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diff --git a/old/10476-h/10476-h.htm b/old/10476-h/10476-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4fa9439 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/10476-h/10476-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,16296 @@ +<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> +<html> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> +<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Vanishing Man, by R. Austin Freeman</title> +<style type="text/css"> + <!-- + body {margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 5%} + * { font-family: Times;} + P { margin-top: .75em; + font-size: 12pt; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; } + HR { width: 33%; } + hr.full {width: 100%;} + PRE { font-family: Courier, monospaced; } + a:link {color:blue; + text-decoration:none} + link {color:blue; + text-decoration:none} + a:visited {color:blue; + text-decoration:none} + a:hover {color:red} + // --> +</style> +</head> +<body> +<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook,<br> + The Vanishing Man, by R. Austin Freeman</h1> +<pre> +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at <a href = "https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre> +<p>Title: The Vanishing Man</p> +<p>Author: R. Austin Freeman</p> +<p>Release Date: December 16, 2003 [eBook #10476]</p> +<p>Language: English</p> +<p>Character set encoding: iso-8859-1</p> +<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE VANISHING MAN***</p> +<br> +<center><h3>E-text prepared by Steven desJardins<br> + and Project Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders</h3></center> + +<p> </p> +<hr class="full"> +<h1>THE VANISHING MAN</h1> + +<center><i>A Detective Romance</i></center> +<br> +<center> +<b>BY R. AUSTIN FREEMAN </b> +</center> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="RULE4_1"><!-- RULE4 1 --></a> +<h2> + TO MY FRIEND +</h2> + +<h2> +A.E.B. +</h2> +<p> </p> +<center> +1911 +</center> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> + +<hr> +<a name="TOC"><!-- TOC --></a> +<h3> + CONTENTS +</h3> + +<h3> +CHAPTER +</h3> +<b> +I <a href="#CH1">THE VANISHING MAN</a><br> +II <a href="#CH2">THE EAVESDROPPER</a><br> +III <a href="#CH3">JOHN THORNDYKE</a><br> +IV <a href="#CH4">LEGAL COMPLICATIONS AND A JACKAL</a><br> +V <a href="#CH5">THE WATERCRESS-BED</a><br> +VI <a href="#CH6">SIDELIGHTS</a><br> +VII <a href="#CH7">JOHN BELLINGHAM'S WILL</a><br> +VIII <a href="#CH8">A MUSEUM IDYLL</a><br> +IX <a href="#CH9">THE SPHINX OF LINCOLN'S INN</a><br> +X <a href="#CH10">THE NEW ALLIANCE</a><br> +XI <a href="#CH11">THE EVIDENCE REVIEWED</a><br> +XII <a href="#CH12">A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY</a><br> +XIII <a href="#CH13">THE CROWNER'S QUEST</a><br> +XIV <a href="#CH14">WHICH CARRIES THE READER INTO THE PROBATE COURT</a><br> +XV <a href="#CH15">CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE</a><br> +XVI <a href="#CH16">"O! ARTEMIDORUS, FAREWELL!"</a><br> +XVII <a href="#CH17">THE ACCUSING FINGER</a><br> +XVIII <a href="#CH18">JOHN BELLINGHAM</a><br> +XIX <a href="#CH19">A STRANGE SYMPOSIUM</a><br> +XX <a href="#CH20">THE END OF THE CASE</a><br> +</b> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH1"><!-- CH1 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER I +</h2> + +<h3> +THE VANISHING MAN +</h3> +<p> +The school of St. Margaret's Hospital was fortunate +in its lecturer on Medical Jurisprudence, or Forensic +Medicine, as it is sometimes described. At some schools +the lecturer on this subject is appointed apparently for +the reason that he lacks the qualifications to lecture +on any other. But with us it was very different: John +Thorndyke was not only an enthusiast, a man of profound +learning and great reputation, but he was an +exceptional teacher, lively and fascinating in style and +of endless resources. Every remarkable case that had +ever been recorded he appeared to have at his fingers' +ends; every fact—chemical, physical, biological, or +even historical—that could in any way be twisted into +a medico-legal significance, was pressed into his service; +and his own varied and curious experiences seemed +as inexhaustible as the widow's cruse. One of his +favourite devices for giving life and interest to a +rather dry subject was that of analysing and commenting +upon contemporary cases as reported in the papers +(always, of course, with a due regard to the legal and +social proprieties); and it was in this way that I first +became introduced to the astonishing series of events +that was destined to exercise so great an influence on +my own life. +</p> +<p> +The lecture which had just been concluded had dealt +with the rather unsatisfactory subject of survivorship. +Most of the students had left the theatre, and the remainder +had gathered round the lecturer's table to +listen to the informal comments that Dr. Thorndyke +was wont to deliver on these occasions in an easy, +conversational manner, leaning against the edge +of the table and apparently addressing his remarks +to a stick of blackboard chalk that he held in his +fingers. +</p> +<p> +"The problem of survivorship," he was saying, in +reply to a question put by one of the students, +"ordinarily occurs in cases where the bodies of the +parties are producible, or where, at any rate, the occurrence +of death and its approximate time are actually +known. But an analogous difficulty may arise in a case +where the body of one of the parties is not forthcoming, +and the fact of death may have to be assumed on collateral +evidence. +</p> +<p> +"Here, of course, the vital question to be settled is, +what is the latest instant at which it is certain that this +person was alive? And the settlement of that question +may turn on some circumstance of the most trivial +and insignificant kind. There is a case in this morning's +paper which illustrates this. A gentleman has +disappeared rather mysteriously. He was last seen by +the servant of a relative at whose house he had called. +Now, if this gentleman should never reappear, dead or +alive, the question as to what was the latest moment +at which he was certainly alive will turn upon the +further question: 'Was he or was he not wearing a +particular article of jewellery when he called at that +relative's house?'" +</p> +<p> +He paused with a reflective eye bent upon the stump +of chalk that he still held; then, noting the expectant +interest with which we were regarding him, he resumed: +</p> +<p> +"The circumstances in this case are very curious; +in fact, they are highly mysterious; and if any legal +issues should arise in respect of them, they are likely +to yield some very remarkable complications. The +gentleman who has disappeared, Mr. John Bellingham, +is a man well known in archaeological circles. He recently +returned from Egypt, bringing with him a very +fine collection of antiquities—some of which, by the +way, he has presented to the British Museum, where +they are now on view—and having made this presentation, +he appears to have gone to Paris on business. I +may mention that the gift consisted of a very fine +mummy and a complete set of tomb-furniture. The +latter, however, had not arrived from Egypt at the +time when the missing man left for Paris, but the +mummy was inspected on the fourteenth of October at +Mr. Bellingham's house by Dr. Norbury of the British +Museum, in the presence of the donor and his solicitor, +and the latter was authorised to hand over the complete +collection to the British Museum authorities +when the tomb-furniture arrived; which he has since +done. +</p> +<p> +"From Paris he seems to have returned on the +twenty-third of November, and to have gone direct +from Charing Cross to the house of a relative, a Mr. +Hurst, who is a bachelor and lives at Eltham. He appeared +at the house at twenty minutes past five, and +as Mr. Hurst had not yet come down from town and +was not expected until a quarter to six, he explained +who he was and said he would wait in the study and +write some letters. The housemaid accordingly showed +him into the study, furnished him with writing materials, +and left him. +</p> +<p> +"At a quarter to six Mr. Hurst let himself in with +his latchkey, and before the housemaid had time to +speak to him he had passed through into the study and +shut the door. +</p> +<p> +"At six o'clock, when the dinner bell was rung, Mr. +Hurst entered the dining-room alone, and, observing +that the table was laid for two, asked the reason. +</p> +<p> +"'I thought Mr. Bellingham was staying to dinner, +sir,' was 'The housemaid's' reply. +</p> +<p> +"'Mr. Bellingham!' exclaimed the astonished host. +'I didn't know he was here. Why was I not told?' +</p> +<p> +"'I thought he was in the study with you, sir,' said +the housemaid. +</p> +<p> +"On this a search was made for the visitor, with the +result that he was nowhere to be found. He had disappeared +without leaving a trace, and what made the +incident more odd was that the housemaid was certain +that he had not gone out by the front door. For since +neither she nor the cook was acquainted with Mr. John +Bellingham, she had remained the whole time either +in the kitchen, which commanded a view of the front +gate, or in the dining-room, which opened into the hall +opposite the study door. The study itself has a French +window opening on a narrow grass plot, across which +is a side gate that opens into an alley; and it appears +that Mr. Bellingham must have made his exit by this +rather eccentric route. At any rate—and this is the +important fact—he was not in the house, and no one +had seen him leave it. +</p> +<p> +"After a hasty meal Mr. Hurst returned to town +and called at the office of Mr. Bellingham's solicitor and +confidential agent, a Mr. Jellicoe, and mentioned the +matter to him. Mr. Jellicoe knew nothing of his client's +return from Paris, and the two men at once took the +train down to Woodford, where the missing man's +brother, Mr. Godfrey Bellingham, lives. The servant +who admitted them said that Mr. Godfrey was not at +home, but that his daughter was in the library, which +is a detached building situated in a shrubbery beyond +the garden at the back of the house. Here the two men +found, not only Miss Bellingham, but also her father, +who had come in by the back gate. +</p> +<p> +"Mr. Godfrey and his daughter listened to Mr. +Hurst's story with the greatest surprise, and assured +him that they had neither seen nor heard anything of +John Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"Presently the party left the library to walk up to +the house; but only a few feet from the library door +Mr. Jellicoe noticed an object lying in the grass and +pointed it out to Mr. Godfrey. +</p> +<p> +"The latter picked it up, and they all recognised it +as a scarab which Mr. John Bellingham had been +accustomed to wear suspended from his watch-chain. +There was no mistaking it. It was a very fine scarab +of the eighteenth dynasty fashioned of lapis lazuli and +engraved with the cartouche of Amenhotep III. It +had been suspended by a gold ring fastened to a wire +which passed through the suspension hole, and the +ring, though broken, was still in position. +</p> +<p> +"This discovery, of course, only added to the mystery, +which was still further increased when, on inquiry, +a suit-case bearing the initials J.B. was found to be +lying unclaimed in the cloak-room at Charing Cross. +Reference to the counterfoil of the ticket-book showed +that it had been deposited about the time of arrival of +the Continental express on the twenty-third of November, +so that its owner must have gone straight on to +Eltham. +</p> +<p> +"That is how the affair stands at present, and, +should the missing man never reappear or should his +body never be found, the question, as you see, which +will be required to be settled is, 'What is the exact +time and place, when and where, he was last known +to be alive?' As to the place, the importance of the +issues involved in that question are obvious and we +need not consider them. But the question of time has +another kind of significance. Cases have occurred, as +I pointed out in the lecture, in which proof of survivorship +by less than a minute has secured succession to +property. Now, the missing man was last seen alive +at Mr. Hurst's house at twenty minutes past five on +the twenty-third of November. But he appears to have +visited his brother's house at Woodford, and, since +nobody saw him at that house, it is at present uncertain +whether he went there before or after calling on Mr. +Hurst. If he went there first, then twenty minutes +past five on the evening of the twenty-third is the +latest moment at which he is known to have been alive; +but if he went there after, there would have to be +added to this time the shortest possible time in +which he could travel from the one house to the +other. +</p> +<p> +"But the question as to which house he visited first +hinges on the scarab. If he was wearing the scarab +when he arrived at Mr. Hurst's house, it would be certain +that he went there first; but if it was not then +on his watch-chain, a probability would be established +that he went first to Woodford. Thus, you see, a +question which may conceivably become of the most +vital moment in determining the succession of property +turns on the observation or non-observation by this +housemaid of an apparently trivial and insignificant +fact." +</p> +<p> +"Has the servant made any statement on the subject, +sir?" I ventured to inquire. +</p> +<p> +"Apparently not," replied Dr. Thorndyke; "at +any rate, there is no reference to any such statement +in the newspaper report, though, otherwise, the case +is reported in great detail; indeed, the wealth of detail, +including plans of the two houses, is quite remarkable +and well worth noting as being in itself a fact of considerable +interest." +</p> +<p> +"In what respect, sir, is it of interest?" one of the +students asked. +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" replied Dr. Thorndyke, "I think I must +leave you to consider that question yourself. This is +an untried case, and we mustn't make free with the +actions and motives of individuals." +</p> +<p> +"Does the paper give any description of the missing +man, sir?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; quite an exhaustive description. Indeed, it +is exhaustive to the verge of impropriety, considering +that the man may possibly turn up alive and well at +any moment. It seems that he has an old Pott's fracture +of the left ankle, a linear, longitudinal scar on +each knee—origin not stated, but easily guessed at—and +that he has tattooed on his chest in vermilion a +very finely and distinctly executed representation of +the symbolical Eye of Osiris—or Horus or Ra, as the +different authorities have it. There certainly ought to +be no difficulty in identifying the body. But we will +hope that it won't come to that. +</p> +<p> +"And now I must really be running away, and so +must you; but I would advise you all to get copies of +the paper and file them when you have read the remarkably +full details. It is a most curious case, and +it is highly probable that we shall hear of it again. +Good afternoon, gentlemen." +</p> +<p> +Dr. Thorndyke's advice appealed to all who heard +it, for medical jurisprudence was a live subject at St. +Margaret's and all of us were keenly interested in it. +As a result, we sallied forth in a body to the nearest +newsvendor's, and, having each provided himself with +a copy of the <i>Daily Telegraph</i>, adjourned together to +the Common Room to devour the report and thereafter +to discuss the bearings of the case, unhampered +by those considerations of delicacy that afflicted our +more squeamish and scrupulous teacher. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH2"><!-- CH2 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER II +</h2> + +<h3> +THE EAVESDROPPER +</h3> +<p> +It is one of the canons of correct conduct, scrupulously +adhered to (when convenient) by all well-bred persons, +that an acquaintance should be initiated by a proper +introduction. To this salutary rule, which I have disregarded +to the extent of an entire chapter, I now +hasten to conform; and the more so inasmuch as nearly +two years have passed since my first informal appearance. +</p> +<p> +Permit me, then, to introduce Paul Berkeley, M.B., +etc., recently—very recently—qualified, faultlessly attired +in the professional frock-coat and tall hat, and, +at the moment of introduction, navigating with anxious +care a perilous strait between a row of well-filled coal-sacks +and a colossal tray piled high with kidney potatoes. +</p> +<p> +The passage of this strait landed me on the terra +firma of Fleur-de-Lys Court, where I halted for a moment +to consult my visiting list. There was only one +more patient for me to see this morning, and he lived at +49 Nevill's Court, wherever that might be. I turned +for information to the presiding deity of the coal shop. +</p> +<p> +"Can you direct me, Mrs. Jablett, to Nevill's +Court?" +</p> +<p> +She could and she did, grasping me confidentially by +the arm (the mark remained on my sleeve for weeks) +and pointing a shaking forefinger at the dead wall +ahead. "Nevill's Court," said Mrs. Jablett, "is a +alley, and you goes into it through a archway. It +turns out of Fetter Lane on the right 'and as you goes +up, oppersight Bream's Buildings." +</p> +<p> +I thanked Mrs. Jablett and went on my way, glad +that the morning round was nearly finished, and vaguely +conscious of a growing appetite and of a desire to wash +in hot water. +</p> +<p> +The practice which I was conducting was not my +own. It belonged to poor Dick Barnard, an old St. +Margaret's man of irrepressible spirits and indifferent +physique, who had started only the day before for a +trip down the Mediterranean on board a tramp engaged +in the currant trade; and this, my second morning's +round, was in some sort a voyage of geographical discovery. +</p> +<p> +I walked on briskly up Fetter Lane until a narrow, +arched opening, bearing the superscription "Nevill's +Court," arrested my steps, and here I turned to encounter +one of those surprises that lie in wait for the +wanderer in London byways. Expecting to find the +grey squalor of the ordinary London court, I looked +out from under the shadow of the arch past a row of +decent little shops through a vista full of light and +colour—a vista of ancient, warm-toned roofs and walls +relieved by sunlit foliage. In the heart of London a +tree is always a delightful surprise; but here were not +only trees, but bushes and even flowers. The narrow +footway was bordered by little gardens, which, with +their wooden palings and well-kept shrubs, gave to the +place an air of quaint and sober rusticity; and even +as I entered a bevy of work-girls, with gaily-coloured +blouses and hair aflame in the sunlight, brightened up +the quiet background like the wild flowers that spangle +a summer hedgerow. +</p> +<p> +In one of the gardens I noticed that the little paths +were paved with what looked like circular tiles, but +which, on inspection, I found to be old-fashioned stone +ink-bottles, buried bottom upwards; and I was meditating +upon the quaint conceit of the forgotten scrivener +who had thus adorned his habitation—a law-writer +perhaps, or an author, or perchance even a poet—when +I perceived the number that I was seeking inscribed +on a shabby door in a high wall. There was no bell +or knocker, so, lifting the latch, I pushed the door +open and entered. +</p> +<p> +But if the court itself had been a surprise, this was a +positive wonder, a dream. Here, within earshot of the +rumble of Fleet Street, I was in an old-fashioned garden +enclosed by high walls and, now that the gate was +shut, cut off from all sight and knowledge of the urban +world that seethed without. I stood and gazed in delighted +astonishment. Sun-gilded trees and flower-beds +gay with blossom; lupins, snap-dragons, nasturtiums, +spiry foxgloves, and mighty hollyhocks formed the +foreground; over which a pair of sulphur-tinted butterflies +flitted, unmindful of a buxom and miraculously +clean white cat which pursued them, dancing across +the borders and clapping her snowy paws fruitlessly +in mid-air. And the background was no less wonderful: +a grand old house, dark-eaved and venerable, that +must have looked down on this garden when ruffled +dandies were borne in sedan chairs through the court, +and gentle Izaak Walton, stealing forth from his shop +in Fleet Street, strolled up Fetter Lane to "go a-angling" +at Temple Mills. +</p> +<p> +So overpowered was I by this unexpected vision that +my hand was on the bottom knob of a row of bell-pulls +before I recollected myself; and it was not until a +most infernal jangling from within recalled me to my +business that I observed underneath it a small brass +plate inscribed "Miss Oman." +</p> +<p> +The door opened with some suddenness, and a short, +middle-aged woman surveyed me hungrily. +</p> +<p> +"Have I rung the wrong bell?" I asked—foolishly +enough, I must admit. +</p> +<p> +"How can I tell?" she demanded. "I expect you +have. It's the sort of thing a man would do—ring the +wrong bell and then say he's sorry." +</p> +<p> +"I didn't go as far as that," I retorted. "It seems +to have had the desired effect, and I've made your +acquaintance into the bargain." +</p> +<p> +"Whom do you want to see?" she asked. +</p> +<p> +"Mr. Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"Are you the doctor?" +</p> +<p> +"I am <i>a</i> doctor." +</p> +<p> +"Follow me upstairs," said Miss Oman, "and don't +tread on the paint." +</p> +<p> +I crossed the spacious hall, and, preceded by my +conductress, ascended a noble oak staircase, treading +carefully on a ribbon of matting that ran up the middle. +On the first-floor landing Miss Oman opened a door +and, pointing to the room, said: "Go in there and +wait; I'll tell her you're here." +</p> +<p> +"I said <i>Mr</i>. Bellingham—" I began; but the door +slammed on me, and Miss Oman's footsteps retreated +rapidly down the stairs. +</p> +<p> +It was at once obvious to me that I was in a very +awkward position. The room into which I had been +shown communicated with another, and though the +door of communication was shut, I was unpleasantly +aware of a conversation that was taking place in the +adjoining room. At first, indeed, only a vague mutter, +with a few disjointed phrases, came through the door, +but suddenly an angry voice rang out clear and painfully +distinct: +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I did! And I say it again. Bribery! Collusion! +That's what it amounts to. You want to square +me!" +</p> +<p> +"Nothing of the kind, Godfrey," was the reply in a +lower tone; but at this point I coughed emphatically +and moved a chair, and the voices subsided once more +into an indistinct murmur. +</p> +<p> +To distract my attention from my unseen neighbours +I glanced curiously about the room and speculated +upon the personalities of its occupants. A very curious +room it was, with its pathetic suggestion of decayed +splendour and old-world dignity: a room full of interest +and character and of contrasts and perplexing +contradictions. For the most part it spoke of unmistakable +though decent poverty. It was nearly bare of +furniture, and what little there was was of the cheapest—a +small kitchen table and three Windsor chairs (two +of them with arms); a threadbare string carpet on the +floor, and a cheap cotton cloth on the table; these, +with a set of bookshelves, frankly constructed of +grocer's boxes, formed the entire suite. And yet, +despite its poverty, the place exhaled an air of homely +if rather ascetic comfort, and the taste was irreproachable. +The quiet russet of the tablecloth struck a pleasant +harmony with the subdued bluish green of the +worn carpet; the Windsor chairs and the legs of the +table had been carefully denuded of their glaring varnish +and stained a sober brown; and the austerity of +the whole was relieved by a ginger-jar filled with fresh-cut +flowers and set in the middle of the table. +</p> +<p> +But the contrasts of which I have spoken were most +singular and puzzling. There were the bookshelves, +for instance, home-made and stained at the cost of a +few pence, but filled with recent and costly works on +archaeology and ancient art. There were the objects +on the mantelpiece: a facsimile in bronze—not bronzed +plaster—of the beautiful head of Hypnos and a pair of +fine Ushabti figures. There were the decorations of the +walls, a number of etchings—signed proofs, every one +of them—of Oriental subjects, and a splendid facsimile +reproduction of an Egyptian papyrus. It was incongruous +in the extreme, this mingling of costly refinements +with the barest and shabbiest necessaries of life, +of fastidious culture with manifest poverty. I could +make nothing of it. What manner of man, I wondered, +was this new patient of mine? Was he a miser, hiding +himself and his wealth in this obscure court? An +eccentric savant? A philosopher? Or—more probably—a +crank? But at this point my meditations were +interrupted by the voice from the adjoining room, once +more raised in anger. +</p> +<p> +"But I say that you <i>are</i> making an accusation! +You are implying that I made away with him." +</p> +<p> +"Not at all," was the reply; "but I repeat that it +is your business to ascertain what has become of him. +The responsibility rests upon you." +</p> +<p> +"Upon me!" rejoined the first voice. "And what +about you? Your position is a pretty fishy one if it +comes to that." +</p> +<p> +"What!" roared the other. "Do you insinuate +that I murdered my own brother?" +</p> +<p> +During this amazing colloquy I had stood gaping +with sheer astonishment. Suddenly I recollected myself, +and, dropping into a chair, set my elbows on my +knees and slapped my hands over my ears; and thus +I must have remained for a full minute when I became +aware of the closing of a door behind me. +</p> +<p> +I sprang to my feet and turned in some embarrassment +(for I must have looked unspeakably ridiculous) +to confront the sombre figure of a rather tall and +strikingly handsome girl, who, as she stood with her +hand on the knob of the door, saluted me with a formal +bow. In an instantaneous glance I noted how perfectly +she matched her strange surroundings. Black-robed, +black-haired, with black-grey eyes and a grave, +sad face of ivory pallor, she stood, like one of old +Terborch's portraits, a harmony in tones so low as to be +but a step removed from monochrome. Obviously a +lady in spite of the worn and rusty dress, and something +in the poise of the head and the set of the straight +brows hinted at a spirit that adversity had hardened +rather than broken. +</p> +<p> +"I must ask you to forgive me for keeping you waiting," +she said; and as she spoke a certain softening +at the corners of the austere mouth reminded me of +the absurd position in which she had found me. +</p> +<p> +I murmured that the trifling delay was of no consequence +whatever; that I had, in fact, been rather +glad of the rest; and I was beginning somewhat +vaguely to approach the subject of the invalid when the +voice from the adjoining room again broke forth with +hideous distinctness. +</p> +<p> +"I tell you I'll do nothing of the kind! Why, confound +you, it's nothing less than a conspiracy that +you're proposing!" +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham—as I assumed her to be—stepped +quickly across the floor, flushing angrily, as well she +might; but, as she reached the door, it flew open and +a small, spruce, middle-aged man burst into the room. +</p> +<p> +"Your father is mad, Ruth!" he exclaimed; "absolutely +stark mad! And I refuse to hold any further +communication with him." +</p> +<p> +"The present interview was not of his seeking," +Miss Bellingham replied coldly. +</p> +<p> +"No, it was not," was the wrathful rejoinder; "it +was my mistaken generosity. But there—what is the +use of talking? I've done my best for you and I'll do +no more. Don't trouble to let me out; I can find my +way. Good morning." With a stiff bow and a quick +glance at me, the speaker strode out of the room, +banging the door after him. +</p> +<p> +"I must apologise for this extraordinary reception," +said Miss Bellingham; "but I believe medical men are +not easily astonished. I will introduce you to your +patient now." She opened the door and, as I followed +her into the adjoining room, she said: "Here is another +visitor for you, dear. Doctor—" +</p> +<p> +"Berkeley," said I. "I am acting for my friend +Doctor Barnard." +</p> +<p> +The invalid, a fine-looking man of about fifty-five, +who sat propped up in bed with a pile of pillows, held +out an excessively shaky hand, which I grasped cordially, +making a mental note of the tremor. +</p> +<p> +"How do you do, sir?" said Mr. Bellingham. "I +hope Doctor Barnard is not ill." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, no," I answered; "he has gone for a trip +down the Mediterranean on a currant ship. The chance +occurred rather suddenly, and I bustled him off before +he had time to change his mind. Hence my rather +unceremonious appearance, which I hope you will forgive." +</p> +<p> +"Not at all," was the hearty response. "I'm delighted +to hear that you sent him off; he wanted a +holiday, poor man. And I am delighted to make your +acquaintance, too." +</p> +<p> +"It is very good of you," I said; whereupon he +bowed as gracefully as a man may who is propped up +in bed with a heap of pillows; and having thus exchanged +broadsides of civility, so to speak, we—or, at +least, I—proceeded to business. +</p> +<p> +"How long have you been laid up?" I asked cautiously, +not wishing to make too evident the fact that +my principal had given me no information respecting +his case. +</p> +<p> +"A week to-day," he replied. "The <i>fons et origo +mali</i> was a hansom-cab which upset me opposite the +Law Courts—sent me sprawling in the middle of the +road. My own fault, of course—at least, the cabby +said so, and I suppose he knew. But that was no consolation +to me." +</p> +<p> +"Were you much hurt?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not really; but the fall bruised my knee rather +badly and gave me a deuce of a shake up. I'm too old +for that sort of thing, you know." +</p> +<p> +"Most people are," said I. +</p> +<p> +"True; but you can take a cropper more gracefully +at twenty than at fifty-five. However, the knee is getting +on quite well—you shall see it presently—and +you observe that I am giving it complete rest. But +that isn't the whole of the trouble or the worst of it. +It's my confounded nerves. I'm as irritable as the +devil and as nervous as a cat, and I can't get a decent +night's rest." +</p> +<p> +I recalled the tremulous hand that he had offered +me. He did not look like a drinker, but still— +</p> +<p> +"Do you smoke much?" I inquired diplomatically. +</p> +<p> +He looked at me slyly and chuckled. "That's a +very delicate way to approach the subject, Doctor," +he said. "No, I don't smoke much, and I don't crook +my little finger. I saw you look at my shaky hand +just now—oh, it's all right; I'm not offended. It's a +doctor's business to keep his eyelids lifting. But my +hand is steady enough as a rule, when I'm not upset, +but the least excitement sets me shaking like a jelly. +And the fact is that I have just had a deucedly unpleasant +interview—" +</p> +<p> +"I think," Miss Bellingham interrupted, "Doctor +Berkeley and, in fact, the neighbourhood at large, are +aware of the fact." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham laughed rather shamefacedly. "I'm +afraid I did lose my temper," he said; "but I am an +impulsive old fellow, Doctor, and when I'm put out I'm +apt to speak my mind—a little too bluntly, perhaps." +</p> +<p> +"And audibly," his daughter added. "Do you +know that Doctor Berkeley was reduced to the necessity +of stopping his ears?" She glanced at me, as +she spoke, with something like a twinkle in her solemn +grey eyes. +</p> +<p> +"Did I shout?" Mr. Bellingham asked, not very +contritely, I thought, though he added: "I'm very +sorry, my dear; but it won't happen again. I think +we've seen the last of that good gentleman." +</p> +<p> +"I am sure I hope so," she rejoined, adding: "And +now I will leave you to your talk; I shall be in the +next room if you should want me." +</p> +<p> +I opened the door for her, and when she had passed +out with a stiff little bow I seated myself by the bedside +and resumed the consultation. It was evidently +a case of nervous breakdown, to which the cab accident +had, no doubt, contributed. As to the other antecedents, +they were no concern of mine, though Mr. Bellingham +seemed to think otherwise, for he resumed: +"That cab business was the last straw, you know, and +it finished me off, but I have been going down the hill +for a long time. I've had a lot of trouble during the +last two years. But I suppose I oughtn't to pester +you with the details of my personal affairs." +</p> +<p> +"Anything that bears on your present state of health +is of interest to me if you don't mind telling it," I +said. +</p> +<p> +"Mind!" he exclaimed. "Did you ever meet an +invalid who didn't enjoy talking about his own health? +It's the listener who minds, as a rule." +</p> +<p> +"Well, the present listener doesn't," I said. +</p> +<p> +"Then," said Mr. Bellingham, "I'll treat myself to +the luxury of telling you all my troubles; I don't often +get the chance of a confidential grumble to a responsible +man of my own class. And I really have some excuse +for railing at Fortune, as you will agree when I tell +you that, a couple of years ago, I went to bed one +night a gentleman of independent means and excellent +prospects and woke up in the morning to find myself +practically a beggar. Not a cheerful experience that, +you know, at my time of life, eh?" +</p> +<p> +"No," I agreed, "nor at any other." +</p> +<p> +"And that was not all," he continued; "for, at the +same moment, I lost my only brother, my dearest, +kindest friend. He disappeared—vanished off the face +of the earth; but perhaps you have heard of the affair. +The confounded papers were full of it at the time." +</p> +<p> +He paused abruptly, noticing, no doubt, a sudden +change in my face. Of course, I recollected the case +now. Indeed, ever since I had entered the house some +chord of memory had been faintly vibrating, and now +his last words had struck out the full note. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I said, "I remember the incident, though I +don't suppose I should but for the fact that our lecturer +on medical jurisprudence drew my attention to +it." +</p> +<p> +"Indeed," said Mr. Bellingham, rather uneasily, as +I fancied. "What did he say about it?" +</p> +<p> +"He referred to it as a case that was calculated to +give rise to some very pretty legal complications." +</p> +<p> +"By Jove!" exclaimed Mr. Bellingham, "that man +was a prophet! Legal complications, indeed! But +I'll be bound he never guessed at the sort of infernal +tangle that has actually gathered round the affair. By +the way, what was his name?" +</p> +<p> +"Thorndyke," I replied. "Doctor John Thorndyke." +</p> +<p> +"Thorndyke," Mr. Bellingham repeated in a musing, +retrospective tone. "I seem to remember that name. +Yes, of course. I have heard a legal friend of mine, a +Mr. Marchmont, speak of him in reference to the case +of a man whom I knew slightly years ago—a certain +Jeffrey Blackmore, who also disappeared very mysteriously. +I remember now that Doctor Thorndyke +unravelled that case with most remarkable ingenuity." +</p> +<p> +"I daresay he would be very much interested to hear +about your case," I suggested. +</p> +<p> +"I daresay he would," was the reply; "but one +can't take up a professional man's time for nothing, +and I couldn't afford to pay him. And that reminds +me that I'm taking up your time by gossiping about +my purely personal affairs." +</p> +<p> +"My morning round is finished," said I, "and, moreover, +your personal affairs are highly interesting. I +suppose I mustn't ask what is the nature of the legal +entanglement?" +</p> +<p> +"Not unless you are prepared to stay here for the +rest of the day and go home a raving lunatic. But I'll +tell you this much: the trouble is about my poor +brother's will. In the first place, it can't be administered +because there is no sufficient evidence that my +brother is dead; and in the second place, if it could, +all the property would go to people who were never +intended to benefit. The will itself is the most diabolically +exasperating document that was ever produced +by the perverted ingenuity of a wrong-headed +man. That's all. Will you have a look at my knee?" +</p> +<p> +As Mr. Bellingham's explanation (delivered in a +rapid <i>crescendo</i> and ending almost in a shout) had left +him purple-faced and trembling, I thought it best to +bring our talk to an end. Accordingly I proceeded +to inspect the injured knee, which was now nearly well, +and to overhaul my patient generally; and having given +him detailed instructions as to his general conduct, I +rose to take my leave. +</p> +<p> +"And remember," I said as I shook his hand, "no +tobacco, no coffee, no excitement of any kind. Lead +a quiet, bovine life." +</p> +<p> +"That's all very well," he grumbled, "but supposing +people come here and excite me?" +</p> +<p> +"Disregard them," said I, "and read <i>Whitaker's +Almanack</i>." And with this parting advice I passed +out into the other room. +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham was seated at the table with a pile +of blue-covered note-books before her, two of which +were open, displaying pages closely written in a small, +neat handwriting. She rose as I entered and looked +at me inquiringly. +</p> +<p> +"I heard you advising my father to read <i>Whitaker's +Almanack</i>," she said. "Was that as a curative measure?" +</p> +<p> +"Entirely," I replied. "I recommended it for its +medicinal virtues, as an antidote to mental excitement." +</p> +<p> +She smiled faintly. "It certainly is not a highly +emotional book," she said, and then asked: "Have +you any other instructions to give?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, I might give the conventional advice—to +maintain a cheerful outlook and avoid worry; but I +don't suppose you would find it very helpful." +</p> +<p> +"No," she answered bitterly; "it is a counsel of +perfection. People in our position are not a very +cheerful class, I am afraid; but still they don't seek +out worries from sheer perverseness. The worries come +unsought. But, of course, you can't enter into that." +</p> +<p> +"I can't give any practical help, I fear, though I do +sincerely hope that your father's affairs will straighten +themselves out soon." +</p> +<p> +She thanked me for my good wishes and accompanied +me down to the street door, where, with a bow +and a rather stiff handshake, she gave me my <i>congé</i>. +</p> +<p> +Very ungratefully the noise of Fetter Lane smote on +my ears as I came out through the archway, and very +squalid and unrestful the little street looked when contrasted +with the dignity and monastic quiet of the old +garden. As to the surgery, with its oilcloth floor and +walls made hideous with gaudy insurance show-cards +in sham gilt frames, its aspect was so revolting that I +flew to the day-book for distraction, and was still +busily entering the morning's visits when the bottle-boy, +Adolphus, entered stealthily to announce lunch. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH3"><!-- CH3 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER III +</h2> + +<h3> +JOHN THORNDYKE +</h3> +<p> +That the character of an individual tends to be reflected +in his dress is a fact familiar to the least +observant. That the observation is equally applicable +to aggregates of men is less familiar, but equally true. +Do not the members of the fighting professions, even to +this day, deck themselves in feathers, in gaudy colours +and gilded ornaments, after the manner of the African +war-chief or the "Redskin brave," and thereby indicate +the place of war in modern civilisation? Does not the +Church of Rome send her priests to the altar in habiliments +that were fashionable before the fall of the +Roman Empire, in token of her immovable conservatism? +And, lastly, does not the Law, lumbering on in +the wake of progress, symbolise its subjection to precedent +by head-gear reminiscent of the days of good +Queen Anne? +</p> +<p> +I should apologise for obtruding upon the reader +these somewhat trite reflections; which were set going +by the quaint stock-in-trade of the wig-maker's shop in +the cloisters of the Inner Temple, whither I had strayed +on a sultry afternoon in quest of shade and quiet. I +had halted opposite the little shop window, and, with +my eyes bent dreamily on the row of wigs, was pursuing +the above train of thought when I was startled +by a deep voice saying softly in my ear: "I'd have +the full-bottomed one if I were you." +</p> +<p> +I turned swiftly and rather fiercely, and looked into +the face of my old friend and fellow-student, Jervis, +behind whom, regarding us with a sedate smile, stood +my former teacher, Dr. John Thorndyke. Both men +greeted me with a warmth that I felt to be very flattering, +for Thorndyke was quite a great personage, and +even Jervis was several years my academic senior. +</p> +<p> +"You are coming in to have a cup of tea with us, +I hope," said Thorndyke; and as I assented gladly, he +took my arm and led me across the court in the direction +of the Treasury. +</p> +<p> +"But why that hungry gaze at those forensic vanities, +Berkeley?" he asked. "Are you thinking of +following my example and Jervis's—deserting the bedside +for the Bar?" +</p> +<p> +"What! Has Jervis gone into the law?" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"Bless you, yes!" replied Jervis. "I have become +parasitical on Thorndyke! 'The big fleas have little +fleas,' you know. I am the additional fraction trailing +after the whole number in the rear of a decimal +point." +</p> +<p> +"Don't you believe him, Berkeley," interposed +Thorndyke. "He is the brains of the firm. I supply +the respectability and moral worth. But you haven't +answered my question. What are you doing here on +a summer afternoon staring into a wigmaker's window?" +</p> +<p> +"I am Barnard's locum; he is in practice in Fetter +Lane." +</p> +<p> +"I know," said Thorndyke; "we meet him occasionally, +and very pale and peaky he has been looking +of late. Is he taking a holiday?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. He has gone for a trip to the Isles of Greece +in a currant ship." +</p> +<p> +"Then," said Jervis, "you are actually a local G.P. +I thought you were looking beastly respectable." +</p> +<p> +"And, judging from your leisured manner when we +encountered you," added Thorndyke, "the practice is +not a strenuous one. I suppose it is entirely local?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I replied. "The patients mostly live in the +small streets and courts within a half-mile radius of +the surgery, and the abodes of some of them are pretty +squalid. Oh! and that reminds me of a very strange +coincidence. It will interest you, I think." +</p> +<p> +"Life is made up of strange coincidences," said +Thorndyke. "Nobody but a reviewer of novels is ever +really surprised at a coincidence. But what is yours?" +</p> +<p> +"It is connected with a case that you mentioned to +us at the hospital about two years ago, the case of a +man who disappeared under rather mysterious circumstances. +Do you remember it? The man's name was +Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"The Egyptologist? Yes, I remember the case quite +well. What about it?" +</p> +<p> +"The brother is a patient of mine. He is living in +Nevill's Court with his daughter, and they seem to be +as poor as church mice." +</p> +<p> +"Really," said Thorndyke, "this is quite interesting. +They must have come down in the world rather suddenly. +If I remember rightly, the brother was living +in a house of some pretensions standing in its own +grounds." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that is so. I see you recollect all about the +case." +</p> +<p> +"My dear fellow," said Jervis, "Thorndyke never +forgets a likely case. He is a sort of medico-legal +camel. He gulps down the raw facts from the newspapers +or elsewhere, and then, in his leisure moments, +he calmly regurgitates them and has a quiet chew at +them. It is a quaint habit. A case crops up in the +papers or in one of the courts, and Thorndyke swallows +it whole. Then it lapses and everyone forgets it. A +year or two later it crops up in a new form, and, to +your astonishment, you find that Thorndyke has got it +all cut and dried. He has been ruminating on it +periodically in the interval." +</p> +<p> +"You notice," said Thorndyke, "that my learned +friend is pleased to indulge in mixed metaphors. But +his statement is substantially true, though obscurely +worded. You must tell us more about the Bellinghams +when we have fortified you with a cup of tea." +</p> +<p> +Our talk had brought us to Thorndyke's chambers, +which were on the first floor of No. 5A King's Bench +Walk, and as we entered the fine, spacious, panelled +room we found a small, elderly man, neatly dressed in +black, setting out the tea-service on the table. I +glanced at him with some curiosity. He hardly looked +like a servant, in spite of his neat, black clothes; in +fact, his appearance was rather puzzling, for while his +quiet dignity and his serious, intelligent face suggested +some kind of professional man, his neat, capable hands +were those of a skilled mechanic. +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke surveyed the tea-tray thoughtfully and +then looked at his retainer. "I see you have put three +tea-cups, Polton," he said. "Now, how did you know +I was bringing someone in to tea?" +</p> +<p> +The little man smiled a quaint, crinkly smile of +gratification as he explained: +</p> +<p> +"I happened to look out of the laboratory window +as you turned the corner, sir." +</p> +<p> +"How disappointingly simple," said Jervis. "We +were hoping for something abstruse and telepathic." +</p> +<p> +"Simplicity is the soul of efficiency, sir," replied +Polton as he checked the tea-service to make sure +that nothing was forgotten, and with this remarkable +aphorism he silently evaporated. +</p> +<p> +"To return to the Bellingham case," said Thorndyke, +when he had poured out the tea. "Have you +picked up any facts relating to the parties—any facts, +I mean, of course, that it would be proper for you to +mention?" +</p> +<p> +"I have learned one or two things that there is no +harm in repeating. For instance, I gather that Godfrey +Bellingham—my patient—lost all his property quite +suddenly about the time of the disappearance." +</p> +<p> +"That is really odd," said Thorndyke. "The opposite +condition would be quite understandable, but one +doesn't see exactly how this can have happened, unless +there was an allowance of some sort." +</p> +<p> +"No, that was what struck me. But there seem to +be some queer features in the case, and the legal position +is evidently getting complicated. There is a will, +for example, which is giving trouble." +</p> +<p> +"They will hardly be able to administer the will +without either proof or presumption of death," Thorndyke +remarked. +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. That's one of the difficulties. Another +is that there seems to be some fatal defect in the drafting +of the will itself. I don't know what it is, but I +expect I shall hear sooner or later. By the way, I +mentioned the interest that you had taken in the case, +and I think Bellingham would have liked to consult +you, but, of course, the poor devil has no money." +</p> +<p> +"That is awkward for him if the other interested +parties have. There will probably be legal proceedings +of some kind, and as the law takes no account of +poverty, he is likely to go to the wall. He ought to +have advice of some sort." +</p> +<p> +"I don't see how he is to get it," said I. +</p> +<p> +"Neither do I," Thorndyke admitted. "There are +no hospitals for impecunious litigants; it is assumed +that only persons of means have a right to go to law. +Of course, if we knew the man and the circumstances +we might be able to help him; but, for all we know to +the contrary, he may be an arrant scoundrel." +</p> +<p> +I recalled the strange conversation that I had overheard, +and wondered what Thorndyke would have +thought of it if it had been allowable for me to repeat +it. Obviously it was not, however, and I could only +give my own impressions. +</p> +<p> +"He doesn't strike me as that," I said; "but, of +course, one never knows. Personally, he impressed me +rather favourably, which is more than the other man +did." +</p> +<p> +"What other man?" asked Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"There was another man in the case, wasn't there? +I forget his name. I saw him at the house and didn't +much like the look of him. I suspect he's putting some +sort of pressure on Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"Berkeley knows more about this than he is telling +us," said Jervis. "Let us look up the report and see +who this stranger is." He took down from a shelf a +large volume of newspaper-cuttings and laid it on the +table. +</p> +<p> +"You see," said he, as he ran his finger down the +index, "Thorndyke files all the cases that are likely to +come to something, and I know he had expectations +respecting this one. I fancy he had some ghoulish +hope that the missing gentleman's head might turn up +in somebody's dust-bin. Here we are; the other man's +name is Hurst. He is apparently a cousin, and it +was at his house that the missing man was last seen +alive." +</p> +<p> +"So you think Mr. Hurst is moving in the matter?" +said Thorndyke, when he had glanced over the report. +</p> +<p> +"That is my impression," I replied, "though I really +know nothing about it." +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Thorndyke, "if you should learn what +is being done and should have permission to speak of +it, I shall be very interested to hear how the case progresses; +and if an unofficial opinion on any point would +be of service, I think there would be no harm in my +giving it." +</p> +<p> +"It would certainly be of great value if the other +parties are taking professional advice," I said; and +then, after a pause, I asked: "Have you given this +case much consideration?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke reflected. "No," he said, "I can't say +that I have. I turned it over rather carefully when the +report first appeared, and I have speculated on it occasionally +since. It is my habit, as Jervis was telling +you, to utilise odd moments of leisure (such as a railway journey, +for instance) by constructing theories to +account for the facts of such obscure cases as have +come to my notice. It is a useful habit, I think, for, +apart from the mental exercise and experience that one +gains from it, an appreciable proportion of these cases +ultimately come into my hands, and then the previous +consideration of them is so much time gained." +</p> +<p> +"Have you formed any theory to account for the +facts in this case?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; I have several theories, one of which I especially +favour, and I am waiting with great interest +such new facts as may indicate to me which of these +theories is probably the correct one." +</p> +<p> +"It's no use your trying to pump him, Berkeley," +said Jervis. "He is fitted with an information-valve +that opens inwards. You can pour in as much as you +like, but you can't get any out." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke chuckled. "My learned friend is, in the +main, correct," he said. "You see, I may be called +upon any day to advise on this case, in which event I +should feel remarkably foolish if I had already expounded +my views in detail. But I should like to hear +what you and Jervis make of the case as reported in the +newspapers." +</p> +<p> +"There now," exclaimed Jervis, "what did I tell +you? He wants to suck our brains." +</p> +<p> +"As far as my brain is concerned," I said, "the +process of suction isn't likely to yield much except a +vacuum, so I will resign in favour of you. You are a +full-blown lawyer, whereas I am only a simple G.P." +</p> +<p> +Jervis filled his pipe with deliberate care and lighted +it. Then, blowing a slender stream of smoke into the +air, he said: +</p> +<p> +"If you want to know what I make of the case from +that report, I can tell you in one word—nothing. +Every road seems to end in a cul-de-sac." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, come!" said Thorndyke, "this is mere laziness. +Berkeley wants to witness a display of your +forensic wisdom. A learned counsel may be in a fog—he +very often is—but he doesn't state the fact baldly; +he wraps it up in a decent verbal disguise. Tell us how +you arrive at your conclusion. Show us that you have +really weighed the facts." +</p> +<p> +"Very well," said Jervis, "I will give you a masterly +analysis of the case—leading to nothing." He continued +to puff at his pipe for a time with slight embarrassment, +as I thought—and I fully sympathised with +him. Finally he blew a little cloud and commenced: +</p> +<p> +"The position appears to be this: Here is a man +who is seen to enter a certain house, who is shown into +a certain room and shut in. He is not seen to come +out, and yet, when the room is next entered, it is found +to be empty; and that man is never seen again, alive or +dead. That is a pretty tough beginning. +</p> +<p> +"Now, it is evident that one of three things must +have happened. Either he must have remained in that +room, or at least in that house, alive; or he must have +died, naturally or otherwise, and his body have been +concealed; or he must have left the house unobserved. +Let us take the first case. This affair happened nearly +two years ago. Now, he couldn't have remained alive +in the house for two years. He would have been noticed. +The servants, for instance, when cleaning out the rooms, +would have observed him." +</p> +<p> +Here Thorndyke interposed with an indulgent smile +at his junior: "My learned friend is treating the inquiry +with unbecoming levity. We accept the conclusion +that the man did not remain in the house +alive." +</p> +<p> +"Very well. Then did he remain in it dead? Apparently +not. The report says that as soon as the man +was missed, Hurst and the servants together searched +the house thoroughly. But there had been no time or +opportunity to dispose of the body, whence the only +possible conclusion is that the body was not there. +Moreover, if we admit the possibility of his having +been murdered—for that is what concealment of the +body would imply—there is the question: Who could +have murdered him? Not the servants, obviously, and +as to Hurst—well, of course, we don't know what his +relations with the missing man have been—at least, I +don't." +</p> +<p> +"Neither do I," said Thorndyke. "I know nothing +beyond what is in the newspaper report and what +Berkeley has told us." +</p> +<p> +"Then we know nothing. He may have had a motive +for murdering the man or he may not. The point is +that he doesn't seem to have had the opportunity. +Even if we suppose that he managed to conceal the +body temporarily, still there was the final disposal of +it. He couldn't have buried it in the garden with the +servants about; neither could he have burned it. The +only conceivable method by which he could have got +rid of it would have been that of cutting it up into +fragments and burying the dismembered parts in some +secluded spots or dropping them into ponds or rivers. +But no remains of the kind have been found, as some +of them probably would have been by now, so that +there is nothing to support this suggestion; indeed, the +idea of murder, in this house at least, seems to be excluded +by the search that was made the instant the +man was missed. +</p> +<p> +"Then to take the third alternative: Did he leave +the house unobserved? Well, it is not impossible, but +it would be a queer thing to do. He may have been +an impulsive or eccentric man. We can't say. We +know nothing about him. But two years have elapsed +and he has never turned up, so that if he left the house +secretly he must have gone into hiding and be hiding +still. Of course, he may have been the sort of lunatic +who would behave in that manner or he may not. +We have no information as to his personal character. +</p> +<p> +"Then there is the complication of the scarab that +was picked up in the grounds of his brother's house at +Woodford. That seems to show that he visited that +house at some time. But no one admits having seen +him there; and it is uncertain, therefore, whether he +went first to his brother's house or to Hurst's. If he +was wearing the scarab when he arrived at the Eltham +house, he must have left that house unobserved and +gone to Woodford; but if he was not wearing it he +probably went from Woodford to Eltham and there +finally disappeared. As to whether he was or was not +wearing the scarab when he was last seen alive by +Hurst's housemaid, there is at present no evidence. +</p> +<p> +"If he went to his brother's house after his visit to +Hurst, the disappearance is more understandable if we +don't mind flinging accusations of murder about rather +casually; for the disposal of the body would be much +less difficult in that case. Apparently no one saw him +enter the house, and, if he did enter, it was by a back +gate which communicated with the library—a separate +building some distance from the house. In that case +it would have been physically possible for the Bellinghams +to have made away with him. There was plenty +of time to dispose of the body unobserved—temporarily, +at any rate. Nobody had seen him come to the house, +and nobody knew that he was there—if he <i>was</i> there; +and apparently no search was made either at the time +or afterwards. In fact, if it could be shown that the +missing man ever left Hurst's house alive, or that he +was wearing the scarab when he arrived there, things +would look rather fishy for the Bellinghams—for, of +course, the girl must have been in it if the father was. +But there's the crux: there is no proof that the man +ever did leave Hurst's house alive. And if he didn't—but +there! as I said at first, whichever turning you +take, you find that it ends in a blind alley." +</p> +<p> +"A lame ending to a masterly exposition," was +Thorndyke's comment. +</p> +<p> +"I know," said Jervis. "But what would you have? +There are quite a number of possible solutions, and +one of them must be the true one. But how are we +to judge which it is? I maintain that until we know +something of the parties and the financial and other +interests involved we have no data." +</p> +<p> +"There," said Thorndyke, "I disagree with you entirely. +I maintain that we have ample data. You +say that we have no means of judging which of the +various possible solutions is the true one; but I think +that if you will read the report carefully and thoughtfully +you will find that the facts now known to us +point clearly to one explanation, and one only. It +may not be the true explanation, and I don't suppose +it is. But we are now dealing with the matter speculatively, +academically, and I contend that our data +yield a definite conclusion. What do you say, Berkeley?" +</p> +<p> +"I say that it is time for me to be off; the evening +consultations begin at half-past six." +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Thorndyke, "don't let us keep you +from your duties, with poor Barnard currant-picking +in the Grecian Isles. But come in and see us again. +Drop in when you like, after your work is done. You +won't be in our way even if we are busy, which we +very seldom are after eight o'clock." +</p> +<p> +I thanked Dr. Thorndyke most heartily for making +me free of his chambers in this hospitable fashion and +took my leave, setting forth homewards by way of +Middle Temple Lane and the Embankment; not a very +direct route for Fetter Lane, it must be confessed; but +our talk had revived my interest in the Bellingham +household and put me in a reflective vein. +</p> +<p> +From the remarkable conversation that I had overheard +it was evident that the plot was thickening. +Not that I supposed that these two respectable gentlemen +really suspected one another of having made away +with the missing man; but still, their unguarded words, +spoken in anger, made it clear that each had allowed +the thought of sinister possibilities to enter his mind—a +dangerous condition that might easily grow into +actual suspicion. And then the circumstances really +were highly mysterious, as I realised with especial vividness +now after listening to my friend's analysis of the +evidence. +</p> +<p> +From the problem itself my mind travelled, not for +the first time during the last few days, to the handsome +girl who had seemed in my eyes the high-priestess +of this temple of mystery in the quaint little court. +What a strange figure she made against this strange +background, with her quiet, chilly, self-contained manner, +her pale face, so sad and worn, her black, straight +brows and solemn grey eyes, so inscrutable, mysterious, +Sibylline. A striking, even impressive, personality +this, I reflected, with something in it sombre and +enigmatic that attracted and yet repelled. +</p> +<p> +And here I recalled Jervis's words: "The girl must +have been in it if the father was." It was a dreadful +thought, even though only speculatively uttered, and +my heart rejected it; rejected it with an indignation +that rather surprised me. And this notwithstanding +that the sombre black-robed figure that my memory +conjured up was one that associated itself appropriately +enough with the idea of mystery and tragedy. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH4"><!-- CH4 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER IV +</h2> + +<h3> +LEGAL COMPLICATIONS AND A JACKAL +</h3> +<p> +My meditations brought me by a circuitous route, and +ten minutes late, to the end of Fetter Lane, where, +exchanging my rather abstracted air for the alert +manner of a busy practitioner, I strode forward briskly +and darted into the surgery with knitted brows, as +though just released from an anxious case. But there +was only one patient waiting, and she saluted me as I +entered with a snort of defiance. +</p> +<p> +"Here you are, then?" said she. +</p> +<p> +"You are perfectly correct, Miss Oman," I replied; +"in fact, you have put the case in a nutshell. What +can I have the pleasure of doing for you?" +</p> +<p> +"Nothing," was the answer. "My medical adviser is +a lady; but I've brought a note from Mr. Bellingham. +Here it is," and she thrust the envelope into my hand. +</p> +<p> +I glanced through the note and learned that my +patient had had a couple of bad nights and a very +harassing day. "Could I have something to give me +a night's rest?" it concluded. +</p> +<p> +I reflected a few moments. One is not very ready +to prescribe sleeping draughts for unknown patients, +but still, insomnia is a very distressing condition. In +the end, I temporised with a moderate dose of bromide, +deciding to call and see if more energetic measures were +necessary. +</p> +<p> +"He had better take a dose of this at once, Miss +Oman," said I, as I handed her the bottle, "and I will +look in later and see how he is." +</p> +<p> +"I expect he will be glad to see you," she answered, +"for he is all alone to-night and very dumpy. Miss +Bellingham is out. But I must remind you that he's a +poor man and pays his way. You must excuse my mentioning +it." +</p> +<p> +"I am much obliged to you for the hint, Miss Oman," +I rejoined. "It isn't necessary for me to see him, but +I should like just to look in and have a chat." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, it will do him good. You have your points, +though punctuality doesn't seem to be one of them," +and with this parting shot Miss Oman bustled away. +</p> +<p> +Half-past eight found me ascending the great, dim +staircase of the house in Nevill's Court preceded by +Miss Oman, by whom I was ushered into the room. +Mr. Bellingham, who had just finished some sort of +meal, was sitting hunched up in his chair gazing +gloomily into the empty grate. He brightened up as I +entered, but was evidently in very low spirits. +</p> +<p> +"I didn't mean to drag you out after your day's +work was finished," he said, "though I am very glad +to see you." +</p> +<p> +"You haven't dragged me out. I heard you were +alone, so I just dropped in for a few minutes' +gossip." +</p> +<p> +"That is really kind of you," he said heartily. +"But I'm afraid you'll find me rather poor company. +A man who is full of his own highly disagreeable affairs +is not a desirable companion." +</p> +<p> +"You mustn't let me disturb you if you'd rather be +alone," said I, with a sudden fear that I was intruding. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, you won't disturb me," he replied; adding, +with a laugh: "It's more likely to be the other way +about. In fact, if I were not afraid of boring you to +death I would ask you to let me talk my difficulties +over with you." +</p> +<p> +"You won't bore me," I said. "It is generally interesting +to share another man's experiences without +their inconveniences. 'The proper study of mankind +is—man,' you know, especially to a doctor." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham chuckled grimly. "You make me +feel like a microbe," he said. "However, if you would +care to take a peep at me through your microscope, I +will crawl on to the stage for your inspection, though +it is not <i>my</i> actions that furnish the materials for your +psychological studies. I am only a passive agent. It +is my poor brother who is the <i>Deus ex machina</i>, who, +from his unknown grave, as I fear, pulls the strings of +this infernal puppet-show." +</p> +<p> +He paused, and for a space gazed thoughtfully into +the grate as if he had forgotten my presence. At +length he looked up, and resumed: +</p> +<p> +"It is a curious story, Doctor—a very curious story. +Part of it you know—the middle part. I will tell it +you from the beginning, and then you will know as +much as I do; for, as to the end, that is known to no +one. It is written, no doubt, in the book of destiny, +but the page has yet to be turned. +</p> +<p> +"The mischief began with my father's death. He +was a country clergyman of very moderate means, a +widower with two children, my brother John and me. +He managed to send us both to Oxford, after which +John went into the Foreign Office and I was to have +gone into the Church. But I suddenly discovered that +my views on religion had undergone a change that made +this impossible, and just about this time my father +came into a quite considerable property. Now, as it +was his expressed intention to leave the estate equally +divided between my brother and me, there was no need +for me to take up any profession for a livelihood. +Archaeology was already the passion of my life, and I +determined to devote myself henceforth to my favourite +study, in which, by the way, I was following a family +tendency; for my father was an enthusiastic student +of ancient Oriental history, and John was, as you know, +an ardent Egyptologist. +</p> +<p> +"Then my father died quite suddenly, and left no +will. He had intended to have one drawn up, but had +put it off until it was too late. And since nearly all +the property was in the form of real estate, my brother +inherited practically the whole of it. However, in +deference to the known wishes of my father, he made +me an allowance of five hundred a year, which was +about a quarter of the annual income, I urged him to +assign me a lump sum, but he refused to do this. Instead, +he instructed his solicitor to pay me the allowance +in quarterly instalments during the rest of his +life; and it was understood that, on his death, the +entire estate should devolve on me, or if I died first, +on my daughter Ruth. Then, as you know, he disappeared +suddenly, and as the circumstances suggested +that he was dead, and there was no evidence that he +was alive, his solicitor—a Mr. Jellicoe—found himself +unable to continue the payment of the allowance. On +the other hand, as there was no positive evidence that +my brother was dead, it was impossible to administer +the will." +</p> +<p> +"You say that the circumstances suggested that +your brother was dead. What circumstances were +they?" +</p> +<p> +"Principally the suddenness and completeness of the +disappearance. His luggage, as you may remember, +was found lying unclaimed at the railway station; and +there was another circumstance even more suggestive. +My brother drew a pension from the Foreign Office, for +which he had to apply in person, or, if abroad, produce +proof that he was alive on the date when the payment +became due. Now, he was exceedingly regular in this +respect; in fact, he had never been known to fail, +either to appear in person or to transmit the necessary +documents to his agent, Mr. Jellicoe. But from the +moment when he vanished so mysteriously to the present +day, nothing whatever has been heard of him." +</p> +<p> +"It's a very awkward position for you," I said, +"but I should think there will not be much difficulty +in obtaining the permission of the Court to presume +death and to proceed to prove the will." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham made a wry face. "I expect you +are right," he said, "but, unfortunately, that doesn't +help me much. You see, Mr. Jellicoe, having waited +a reasonable time for my brother to reappear, took a +very unusual but, I think, in the special circumstances, +a very proper step: he summoned me and the other +interested party to his office and communicated to us +the provisions of the will. And very extraordinary +provisions they turned out to be. I was thunderstruck +when I heard them. And the exasperating thing is +that I feel sure my poor brother imagined that he had +made everything perfectly safe and simple." +</p> +<p> +"They generally do," I said, rather vaguely. +</p> +<p> +"I suppose they do," said Mr. Bellingham; "but +poor John has made the most infernal hash of his will, +and I am certain that he has utterly defeated his own +intentions. You see, we are an old London family. +The house in Queen Square where my brother nominally +lived, but actually kept his collection, has been +occupied by us for generations, and most of the Bellinghams +are buried in St. George's burial-ground close +by, though some members of the family are buried in +other churchyards in the neighbourhood. Now, my +brother—who, by the way, was a bachelor—had a +strong feeling for the family traditions, and he stipulated, +not unnaturally, in his will that he should be +buried in St. George's burial-ground among his ancestors, +or, at least, in one of the places of burial +appertaining to his native parish. But instead of +simply expressing the wish and directing his executors +to carry it out, he made it a condition affecting the +operation of the will." +</p> +<p> +"Affecting it in what respect?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"In a very vital respect," answered Mr. Bellingham. +"The bulk of the property he bequeathed to me, or if +I predeceased him, to my daughter Ruth. But the +bequest was subject to the condition that I have mentioned—that +he should be buried in a certain place—and +if that condition was not fulfilled, the bulk of the +property was to go to my cousin, George Hurst." +</p> +<p> +"But in that case," said I, "as you can't produce +the body, neither of you can get the property." +</p> +<p> +"I am not so sure of that," he replied. "If my +brother is dead, it is pretty certain that he is not buried +in St. George's or any of the other places mentioned, +and the fact can easily be proved by production of the +registers. So that a permission to presume death +would result in the handing over to Hurst of almost +the entire estate." +</p> +<p> +"Who is the executor?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" he exclaimed, "there is another muddle. +There are two executors; Jellicoe is one, and the other +is the principal beneficiary—Hurst or myself, as the +case may be. But, you see, neither of us can become +an executor until the Court has decided which of us is +the principal beneficiary." +</p> +<p> +"But who is to apply to the Court? I thought that +was the business of the executors." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. That is Hurst's difficulty. We were discussing +it when you called the other day, and a very +animated discussion it was," he added, with a grim +smile. "You see, Jellicoe naturally refuses to move +in the matter alone. He says he must have the support +of the other executor. But Hurst is not at present the +other executor; neither am I. But the two of us together +are the co-executor, since the duty devolves +upon one or other of us, in any case." +</p> +<p> +"It's a complicated position," I said. +</p> +<p> +"It is; and the complication has elicited a very curious +proposal from Hurst. He points out—quite correctly, +I am afraid—that as the conditions as to burial +have not been complied with, the property must come +to him, and he proposes a very neat little arrangement, +which is this: That I shall support him and +Jellicoe in their application for permission to presume +death and administer the will, and that he shall pay +me four hundred a year for life; the arrangement to +hold good <i>in all eventualities</i>." +</p> +<p> +"What does he mean by that?" +</p> +<p> +"He means," said Bellingham, fixing me with a +ferocious scowl, "that if the body should turn up at +any future time, so that the conditions as to burial +should be able to be carried out, he should still retain +the property and pay me the four hundred a year." +</p> +<p> +"The deuce!" said I. "He seems to know how to +drive a bargain." +</p> +<p> +"His position is that he stands to lose four hundred +a year for the term of my life if the body is never +found, and he ought to stand to win if it is." +</p> +<p> +"And I gather that you have refused his offer?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; very emphatically, and my daughter agrees +with me; but I am not sure that I have done the right +thing. A man should think twice, I suppose, before +he burns his boats." +</p> +<p> +"Have you spoken to Mr. Jellicoe about the +matter?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I have been to see him to-day. He is a cautious +man, and he doesn't advise me one way or the +other. But I think he disapproves of my refusal; in +fact, he remarked that a bird in the hand is worth two +in the bush, especially when the whereabouts of the +bush is unknown." +</p> +<p> +"Do you think he will apply to the Court without +your sanction?" +</p> +<p> +"He doesn't want to; but I suppose, if Hurst puts +pressure on him, he will have to. Besides, Hurst, as an +interested party, could apply on his own account, and +after my refusal he probably will; at least, that is +Jellicoe's opinion." +</p> +<p> +"The whole thing is a most astonishing muddle," +I said, "especially when one remembers that your +brother had a lawyer to advise him. Didn't Mr. Jellicoe +point out to him how absurd the provisions were?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, he did. He tells me that he implored my +brother to let him draw up a will embodying the matter +in a reasonable form. But John wouldn't listen to +him. Poor old fellow! he could be very pig-headed when +he chose." +</p> +<p> +"And is Hurst's proposal still open?" +</p> +<p> +"No, thanks to my peppery temper. I refused it +very definitely, and sent him off with a flea in his ear. +I hope I have not made a false step; I was quite taken +by surprise when Hurst made the proposal and got +rather angry. You remember, my brother was last +seen alive at Hurst's house—but there, I oughtn't to +talk like that, and I oughtn't to pester you with my +confounded affairs when you have come in for a +friendly chat, though I gave you fair warning, you +remember." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, but you have been highly entertaining. You +don't realise what an interest I take in your case." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham laughed somewhat grimly. "My +case!" he repeated. "You speak as if I were some +rare and curious sort of criminal lunatic. However, +I'm glad you find me amusing. It's more than I find +myself." +</p> +<p> +"I didn't say amusing; I said interesting. I view +you with deep respect as the central figure of a stirring +drama. And I am not the only person who regards +you in that light. Do you remember my speaking to +you of Doctor Thorndyke?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course I do." +</p> +<p> +"Well, oddly enough, I met him this afternoon and +we had a long talk at his chambers. I took the liberty +of mentioning that I had made your acquaintance. +Did I do wrong?" +</p> +<p> +"No. Certainly not. Why shouldn't you tell him? +Did he remember my infernal case, as you call it?" +</p> +<p> +"Perfectly, in all its details. He is quite an enthusiast, +you know, and uncommonly keen to hear how +the case develops." +</p> +<p> +"So am I, for that matter," said Mr. Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"I wonder," said I, "if you would mind my telling +him what you have told me to-night. It would interest +him enormously." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham reflected awhile with his eyes fixed +on the empty grate. Presently he looked up, and said +slowly: +</p> +<p> +"I don't know why I should. It's no secret; and +if it were, I hold no monopoly in it. No; tell him, if +you think he'd care to hear about it." +</p> +<p> +"You needn't be afraid of his talking," I said. "He +is as close as an oyster; and the facts may mean more +to him than to us. He may be able to give a useful +hint or two." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, I'm not going to pick his brains," Mr. Bellingham +said quickly and with some wrath. "I'm not the +sort of man who goes round cadging for free professional +advice. Understand that clearly, Doctor." +</p> +<p> +"I do," I answered hastily. "That wasn't what I +meant at all. Is that Miss Bellingham coming in? +I heard the front door shut." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that will be my girl, I expect; but don't run +away. You're not afraid of her, are you?" he added +as I hurriedly picked up my hat. +</p> +<p> +"I'm not sure that I'm not," I answered. "She is +a rather majestic young lady." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham chuckled and smothered a yawn, +and at that moment his daughter entered the room; +and, in spite of her shabby black dress and a shabbier +handbag that she carried, I thought her appearance +and manner fully justified my description. +</p> +<p> +"You come in, Miss Bellingham," I said as she +shook my hand with cool civility, "to find your father +yawning and me taking my departure. So I have my +uses, you see. My conversation is the infallible cure +for insomnia." +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham smiled. "I believe I am driving you +away," she said. +</p> +<p> +"Not at all," I replied hastily. "My mission was +accomplished, that was all." +</p> +<p> +"Sit down for a few minutes, Doctor," urged Mr. +Bellingham, "and let Ruth sample the remedy. She +will be affronted if you run away as soon as she comes +in." +</p> +<p> +"Well, you mustn't let me keep you up," I said. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, I'll let you know when I fall asleep," he replied, +with a chuckle; and with this understanding I +sat down again—not at all unwillingly. +</p> +<p> +At this moment Miss Oman entered with a small +tray and a smile of which I should not have supposed +her to be capable. +</p> +<p> +"You'll take your toast and cocoa while they're hot, +dear, won't you?" she said coaxingly. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I will, Phyllis, thank you," Miss Bellingham +answered. "I am only just going to take off my hat," +and she left the room, followed by the astonishingly +transfigured spinster. +</p> +<p> +She returned almost immediately as Mr. Bellingham +was in the midst of a profound yawn, and sat down to +her frugal meal, when her father mystified me considerably +by remarking: +</p> +<p> +"You're late to-night, chick. Have the Shepherd +Kings been giving trouble?" +</p> +<p> +"No," she replied; "but I thought I might as well +get them done. So I dropped in at the Ormond Street +library on my way home and finished them." +</p> +<p> +"Then they are ready for stuffing now?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes." As she answered she caught my astonished +eye (for a stuffed Shepherd King is undoubtedly a +somewhat surprising phenomenon) and laughed softly. +</p> +<p> +"We mustn't talk in riddles like this," she said, +"before Doctor Berkeley, or he will turn us both into +pillars of salt. My father is referring to my work," she +explained to me. +</p> +<p> +"Are you a taxidermist, then?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +She hastily set down the cup that she was raising to +her lips and broke into a ripple of quiet laughter. +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid my father has misled you with his +irreverent expressions. He will have to atone by explaining." +</p> +<p> +"You see, Doctor," said Mr. Bellingham, "Ruth is +a literary searcher—" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't call me a 'searcher'!" Miss Bellingham +protested. "It suggests the female searcher at a +police-station. Say investigator." +</p> +<p> +"Very well, investigator or investigatrix, if you like. +She hunts up references and bibliographies at the +Museum for people who are writing books. She looks +up everything that has been written on a given subject, +and then, when she has crammed herself to bursting-point +with facts, she goes to her client and disgorges +and crams him or her, and he or she finally disgorges +into the Press." +</p> +<p> +"What a disgusting way to put it!" said his daughter. +"However, that is what it amounts to. I am a +literary jackal, a collector of provender for the literary +lions. Is that quite clear?" +</p> +<p> +"Perfectly. But I don't think that, even now, I +quite understand about the stuffed Shepherd Kings." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, it was not the Shepherd Kings who were to be +stuffed. It was the author! That was mere obscurity +of speech on the part of my father. The position is +this: A venerable archdeacon wrote an article on the +patriarch Joseph—" +</p> +<p> +"And didn't know anything about him," interrupted +Mr. Bellingham, "and got tripped up by a specialist +who did, and then got shirty—" +</p> +<p> +"Nothing of the kind," said Miss Bellingham. "He +knew as much as venerable archdeacons ought to know; +but the expert knew more. So the archdeacon commissioned +me to collect the literature on the state of +Egypt at the end of the seventeenth dynasty, which I +have done; and to-morrow I shall go and stuff him, +as my father expresses it, and then—" +</p> +<p> +"And then," Mr. Bellingham interrupted, "the archdeacon +will rush forth and pelt that expert with Shepherd +Kings and Seqenen-Ra and the whole tag-rag and +bobtail of the seventeenth dynasty. Oh, there'll be +wigs on the green, I can tell you." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I expect there will be quite a lively little +skirmish," said Miss Bellingham. And thus dismissing +the subject, she made an energetic attack on the toast +while her father refreshed himself with a colossal +yawn. +</p> +<p> +I watched her with furtive admiration and deep and +growing interest. In spite of her pallor, her weary +eyes, and her drawn and almost haggard face, she was +an exceedingly handsome girl; and there was in her +aspect a suggestion of purpose, of strength and character +that marked her off from the rank and file of +womanhood. I noted this as I stole an occasional +glance at her or turned to answer some remark addressed +to me; and I noted, too, that her speech, despite +a general undertone of depression, was yet not without +a certain caustic, ironical humour. She was certainly +a rather enigmatical young person, but very decidedly +interesting. +</p> +<p> +When she had finished her repast she put aside the +tray and, opening the shabby handbag, asked: +</p> +<p> +"Do you take any interest in Egyptian history? +We are as mad as hatters on the subject. It seems to +be a family complaint." +</p> +<p> +"I don't know much about it," I answered. "Medical +studies are rather engrossing and don't leave much +time for general reading." +</p> +<p> +"Naturally," she said. "You can't specialise in +everything. But if you would care to see how the +business of a literary jackal is conducted, I will show +you my notes." +</p> +<p> +I accepted the offer eagerly (not, I fear, from pure +enthusiasm for the subject), and she brought forth +from the bag four blue-covered, quarto note-books, each +dealing with one of the four dynasties from the fourteenth +to the seventeenth. As I glanced through the +neat and orderly extracts with which they were filled +we discussed the intricacies of the peculiarly difficult +and confused period that they covered, gradually lowering +our voices as Mr. Bellingham's eyes closed and his +head fell against the back of his chair. We had just +reached the critical reign of Apepa II when a resounding +snore broke in upon the studious quiet of the room +and sent us both into a fit of silent laughter. +</p> +<p> +"Your conversation has done its work," she whispered +as I stealthily picked up my hat, and together +we stole on tiptoe to the door, which she opened without +a sound. Once outside, she suddenly dropped her +bantering manner and said quite earnestly: +</p> +<p> +"How kind it was of you to come and see him to-night! +You have done him a world of good, and I am +most grateful. Good night!" +</p> +<p> +She shook hands with me really cordially, and I took +my way down the creaking stairs in a whirl of happiness +that I was quite at a loss to account for. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH5"><!-- CH5 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER V +</h2> + +<h3> +THE WATERCRESS-BED +</h3> +<p> +Barnard's practice, like most others, was subject to +those fluctuations that fill the struggling practitioner +alternately with hope and despair. The work came in +paroxysms with intervals of almost complete stagnation. +One of these intermissions occurred on the day +after my visit to Nevill's Court, with the result that by +half-past eleven I found myself wondering what I +should do with the remainder of the day. The better +to consider this weighty problem, I strolled down to the +Embankment, and, leaning on the parapet, contemplated +the view across the river; the grey stone bridge +with its perspective of arches, the picturesque pile of +the shot-towers, and beyond, the shadowy shapes of +the Abbey and St. Stephen's. +</p> +<p> +It was a pleasant scene, restful and quiet, with a +touch of life and a hint of sober romance, when a barge +swept down through the middle arch of the bridge with +a lugsail hoisted to a jury mast and a white-aproned +woman at the tiller. Dreamily I watched the craft +creep by upon the moving tide, noted the low freeboard, +almost awash, the careful helmswoman, and the +dog on the forecastle yapping at the distant shore—and +thought of Ruth Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +What was there about this strange girl that had made +so deep an impression on me? That was the question +that I propounded to myself, and not for the first time. +Of the fact itself there was no doubt. But what was +the explanation? Was it her unusual surroundings? +Her occupation and rather recondite learning? Her +striking personality and exceptional good looks? Or +her connection with the dramatic mystery of her lost +uncle? +</p> +<p> +I concluded that it was all of these. Everything +connected with her was unusual and arresting; but +over and above these circumstances there was a certain +sympathy and personal affinity of which I was +strongly conscious and of which I dimly hoped that she, +perhaps, was a little conscious, too. At any rate, I was +deeply interested in her; of that there was no doubt +whatever. Short as our acquaintance had been, she +held a place in my thoughts that had never been held +by any other woman. +</p> +<p> +From Ruth Bellingham my reflections passed by a +natural transition to the curious story that her father +had told me. It was a queer affair, that ill-drawn will, +with the baffled lawyer protesting in the background. +It almost seemed as if there must be something behind +it all, especially when I remembered Mr. Hurst's very +singular proposal. But it was out of <i>my</i> depth; it was +a case for a lawyer, and to a lawyer it should go. This +very night, I resolved, I would go to Thorndyke and +give him the whole story as it had been told to me. +</p> +<p> +And then there happened one of those coincidences +at which we all wonder when they occur, but which are +so frequent as to have become enshrined in a proverb. +For, even as I formed the resolution, I observed two +men approaching from the direction of Blackfriars, +and recognised in them my quondam teacher and his +junior. +</p> +<p> +"I was just thinking about you," I said as they +came up. +</p> +<p> +"Very flattering," replied Jervis; "but I thought +you had to talk of the devil." +</p> +<p> +"Perhaps," suggested Thorndyke, "he was talking +to himself. But why were you thinking of us, and what +was the nature of your thoughts?" +</p> +<p> +"My thoughts had reference to the Bellingham case. +I spent the whole of last evening at Nevill's Court." +</p> +<p> +"Ha! And are there any fresh developments?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, by Jove! there are. Bellingham gave me a +full and detailed description of the will; and a pretty +document it seems to be." +</p> +<p> +"Did he give you permission to repeat the details +to me?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I asked specifically if I might and he had no +objection whatever." +</p> +<p> +"Good. We are lunching at Soho to-day as Polton +has his hands full. Come with us and share our table +and tell us your story as we go. Will that suit +you?" +</p> +<p> +It suited me admirably in the present state of the +practice, and I accepted the invitation with undissembled +glee. +</p> +<p> +"Very well," said Thorndyke; "then let us walk +slowly and finish with matters confidential before we +plunge into the madding crowd." +</p> +<p> +We set forth at a leisurely pace along the broad +pavement and I commenced my narration. As well as I +could remember, I related the circumstances that had +led up to the present disposition of the property and +then proceeded to the actual provisions of the will; +to all of which my two friends listened with rapt +interest, Thorndyke occasionally stopping me to jot +down a memorandum in his pocket-book. +</p> +<p> +"Why, the fellow must have been a stark lunatic!" +Jervis exclaimed, when I had finished. "He seems to +have laid himself out with the most devilish ingenuity +to defeat his own ends." +</p> +<p> +"That is not an uncommon peculiarity with testators," +Thorndyke remarked. "A direct and perfectly +intelligible will is rather the exception. But we can +hardly judge until we have seen the actual document. +I suppose Bellingham hasn't a copy?" +</p> +<p> +"I don't know," said I; "but I will ask him." +</p> +<p> +"If he has one, I should like to look through it," +said Thorndyke. "The provisions are very peculiar, +and, as Jervis says, admirably calculated to defeat the +testator's wishes if they have been correctly reported. +And, apart from that, they have a remarkable bearing +on the circumstances of the disappearance. I daresay +you noticed that." +</p> +<p> +"I noticed that it is very much to Hurst's advantage +that the body has not been found." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course. But there are some other points +that are very significant. However, it would be +premature to discuss the terms of the will until we have +seen the actual document or a certified copy." +</p> +<p> +"If there is a copy extant," I said, "I will try to get +hold of it. Bellingham is terribly afraid of being +suspected of a desire to get professional advice +gratis." +</p> +<p> +"That," said Thorndyke, "is natural enough, and +not discreditable. But you must overcome his scruples +somehow. I expect you will be able to. You are a +plausible young gentleman, as I remember of old, and +you seem to have established yourself as quite the +friend of the family." +</p> +<p> +"They are rather interesting people," I explained; +"very cultivated and with a strong leaning towards +archaeology. It seems to be in the blood." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Thorndyke; "a family tendency, +probably due to contact and common surroundings rather +than heredity. So you like Godfrey Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. He is a trifle peppery and impulsive, but +quite an agreeable, genial old buffer." +</p> +<p> +"And the daughter," said Jervis, "what is she +like?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, she is a learned lady; works up bibliographies +and references at the Museum." +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" Jervis exclaimed, with deep disfavour, "I +know the breed. Inky fingers; no chest to speak of; +all side and spectacles." +</p> +<p> +I rose artlessly at the gross and palpable bait. +</p> +<p> +"You're quite wrong," I exclaimed indignantly, +contrasting Jervis's hideous presentment with the comely +original. "She is an exceedingly good-looking girl, +and her manners all that a lady's should be. A little +stiff, perhaps, but then I am only an acquaintance—almost a stranger." +</p> +<p> +"But," Jervis persisted, "what is she like, in +appearance I mean. Short? fat? sandy? Give us +intelligible details." +</p> +<p> +I made a rapid mental inventory, assisted by my +recent cogitations. +</p> +<p> +"She is about five feet seven, slim but rather plump, +very erect in carriage and graceful in movements; +black hair, loosely parted in the middle and falling very +prettily away from the forehead; pale, clear +complexion, dark grey eyes, straight eyebrows, straight, +well-shaped nose, short mouth, rather full; round chin—what +the deuce are you grinning at, Jervis?" For +my friend had suddenly unmasked his batteries and +now threatened, like the Cheshire Cat, to dissolve into +a mere abstraction of amusement. +</p> +<p> +"If there is a copy of that will, Thorndyke," he said, +"we shall get it. I think you agree with me, reverend +senior?" +</p> +<p> +"I have already said," was the reply, "that I put +my trust in Berkeley. And now let us dismiss professional +topics. This is our hostelry." +</p> +<p> +He pushed open an unpretentious glazed door and +we followed him into the restaurant, whereof the atmosphere +was pervaded by an appetising meatiness +mingled with less agreeable suggestions of the destructive +distillation of fat. +</p> +<p> +It was some two hours later when I wished my friends +adieu under the golden-leaved plane trees of King's +Bench Walk. +</p> +<p> +"I won't ask you to come in now," said Thorndyke, +"as we have some consultations this afternoon. But +come in and see us soon; don't wait for that copy of +the will." +</p> +<p> +"No," said Jervis. "Drop in in the evening when +your work is done; unless, of course, there is more +attractive society elsewhere—Oh, you needn't turn that +colour, my dear child; we have all been young once; +there is even a tradition that Thorndyke was young +some time back in the pre-dynastic period." +</p> +<p> +"Don't take any notice of him, Berkeley," said +Thorndyke. "The egg-shell is sticking to his head +still. He'll know better when he is my age." +</p> +<p> +"Methuselah!" exclaimed Jervis; "I hope I shan't +have to wait as long as that!" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke smiled benevolently at his irrepressible +junior, and, shaking my hand cordially, turned into the +entry. +</p> +<p> +From the Temple I wended northward to the adjacent +College of Surgeons, where I spent a couple of +profitable hours examining the "pickles," and refreshing +my memory on the subjects of pathology and +anatomy; marvelling afresh (as every practical anatomist +must marvel) at the incredibly perfect technique +of the dissections, and inwardly paying a respectful +tribute to the founder of the collection. At length, the +warning of the clock, combined with an increasing craving +for tea, drove me forth and bore me towards the +scene of my, not very strenuous, labours. My mind +was still occupied with the contents of the cases and +the great glass jars, so that I found myself at the corner +of Fetter Lane without a very clear idea of how +I had got there. But at that point I was aroused from +my reflections rather abruptly by a raucous voice in +my ear. +</p> +<p> +"'Orrible discovery at Sidcup!" +</p> +<p> +I turned wrathfully—for a London street-boy's yell, +let off at point-blank range, is, in effect, like the smack +of an open hand—but the inscription on the staring +yellow poster that was held up for my inspection +changed my anger into curiosity. +</p> +<p> +"Horrible discovery in a watercress-bed!" +</p> +<p> +Now, let, prigs deny it if they will, but there is something +very attractive in a "horrible discovery." It +hints at tragedy, at mystery, at romance. It promises +to bring into our grey and commonplace life that element +of the dramatic which is the salt that our existence +is savoured withal. "In a watercress-bed," too! The +rusticity of the background seemed to emphasise the +horror of the discovery, whatever it might be. +</p> +<p> +I bought a copy of the paper, and, tucking it under +my arm, hurried on to the surgery, promising myself +a mental feast of watercress; but as I opened the door +I found myself confronted by a corpulent woman of +piebald and pimply aspect who saluted me with a deep +groan. It was the lady from the coal shop in Fleur-de-Lys +Court. +</p> +<p> +"Good evening, Mrs. Jablett," I said briskly; "not +come about yourself, I hope." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I have," she answered, rising and following +me gloomily into the consulting-room; and then, when +I had seated her in the patient's chair and myself at the +writing-table, she continued: "It's my inside, you +know, Doctor." +</p> +<p> +The statement lacked anatomical precision and +merely excluded the domain of the skin specialist. I +accordingly waited for enlightenment and speculated on +the watercress-beds, while Mrs. Jablett regarded me +expectantly with a dim and watery eye. +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" I said, at length; "it's your—your inside, +is it, Mrs. Jablett?" +</p> +<p> +"Yus. <i>And</i> my 'ead," she added, with a voluminous +sigh that filled the apartment with odorous reminiscences +of "unsweetened." +</p> +<p> +"Your head aches, does it?" +</p> +<p> +"Somethink chronic!" said Mrs. Jablett. "Feels +as if it was a-opening and a-shutting, a-opening and +a-shutting, and when I sit down I feel as if I should +<i>bust</i>." +</p> +<p> +This picturesque description of her sensations—not +wholly inconsistent with her figure—gave the clue to +Mrs. Jablett's sufferings. Resisting a frivolous impulse +to reassure her as to the elasticity of the human integument, +I considered her case in exhaustive detail, coasting +delicately round the subject of "unsweetened," and +finally sent her away, revived in spirits and grasping +a bottle of Mist. Sodae cum Bismutho from Barnard's +big stock-jar. Then I went back to investigate the +Horrible Discovery; but before I could open the paper, +another patient arrived (<i>Impetigo contagiosa</i>, this time, +affecting the "wide and archèd-front sublime" of a +juvenile Fetter Laner), and then yet another, and so +on through the evening until, at last, I forgot the +watercress-beds altogether. It was only when I had purified +myself from the evening consultations with hot water +and a nail-brush and was about to sit down to a frugal +supper, that I remembered the newspaper and fetched +it from the drawer of the consulting-room table, where +it had been hastily thrust out of sight. I folded it into +a convenient form, and, standing it upright against the +water-jug, read the report at my ease as I supped. +</p> +<p> +There was plenty of it. Evidently the reporter had +regarded it as a "scoop," and the editor had backed +him up with ample space and hair-raising head-lines. +</p> +<p><b> +"HORRIBLE DISCOVERY IN A WATERCRESS-BED AT SIDCUP! +</b></p> +<p> +"A startling discovery was made yesterday afternoon +in the course of clearing out a watercress-bed near +the erstwhile rural village of Sidcup in Kent; a +discovery that will occasion many a disagreeable qualm +to those persons who have been in the habit of regaling +themselves with this refreshing esculent. But before +proceeding to a description of the circumstances of the +actual discovery or of the objects found—which, however, +it may be stated at once, are nothing more or less +than the fragments of a dismembered human body—it +will be interesting to trace the remarkable chain of +coincidences by virtue of which the discovery was made. +</p> +<p> +"The beds in question have been laid out in a small +artificial lake fed by a tiny streamlet which forms one +of the numerous tributaries of the River Cray. Its +depth is greater than is usual in watercress-beds, otherwise +the gruesome relics could never have been concealed +beneath its surface, and the flow of water +through it, though continuous, is slow. The tributary +streamlet meanders through a succession of pasture +meadows, in one of which the beds themselves are situated, +and here throughout most of the year the fleecy +victims of the human carnivore carry on the industry +of converting grass into mutton. Now it happened some +years ago that the sheep frequenting these pastures +became affected with the disease known as 'liver-rot'; +and here we must make a short digression into the +domain of pathology. +</p> +<p> +"'Liver-rot' is a disease of quite romantic antecedents. +Its cause is a small, flat worm—the liver-fluke—which +infests the liver and bile-ducts of the affected +sheep. +</p> +<p> +"Now how does the worm get into the sheep's liver? +That is where the romance comes in. Let us see. +</p> +<p> +"The cycle of transformations begins with the deposit +of the eggs of the fluke in some shallow stream or +ditch running through pasture lands. Now each egg +has a sort of lid, which presently opens and lets out a +minute, hairy creature who swims away in search of a +particular kind of water-snail—the kind called by +naturalists <i>Limnaea truncatula</i>. If he finds a snail, he +bores his way into its flesh and soon begins to grow and +wax fat. Then he brings forth a family—of tiny worms +quite unlike himself, little creatures called <i>rediae</i>, which +soon give birth to families of young <i>rediae</i>. So they +may go on for several generations, but at last there +comes a generation of <i>rediae</i> which, instead of giving +birth to fresh <i>rediae</i>, produce families of totally different +offspring; big-headed, long-tailed creatures like miniature +tadpoles, called by the learned <i>cercariae</i>. The +<i>cercariae</i> soon wriggle their way out of the body of the +snail, and then complications arise: for it is the habit +of this particular snail to leave the water occasionally +and take a stroll in the fields. Thus the <i>cercariae</i>, escaping +from the snail, find themselves on the grass, whereupon +they promptly drop their tails and stick themselves +to the grass-blades. Then comes the unsuspecting +sheep to take his frugal meal, and, cropping the +grass, swallows it, <i>cercariae</i> and all. But the latter, +when they find themselves in the sheep's stomach, make +their way straight to the bile-ducts, up which they +travel to the liver. Here, in a few weeks, they grow up +into full-blown flukes and begin the important business +of producing eggs. +</p> +<p> +"Such is the pathological romance of 'liver-rot'; +and now what is its connection with this mysterious +discovery? It is this. After the outbreak of 'liver-rot,' +above referred to, the ground landlord, a Mr. +John Bellingham, instructed his solicitor to insert a +clause in the lease of the beds directing that the latter +should be periodically cleared and examined by an expert +to make sure that they were free from the noxious +water-snails. The last lease expired about two years +ago, and since then the beds have been out of cultivation; +but, for the safety of the adjacent pastures, it +was considered necessary to make the customary periodical +inspection, and it was in the course of cleaning the +beds for this purpose that the present discovery was +made. +</p> +<p> +"The operation began two days ago. A gang of +three men proceeded systematically to grub up the +plants and collect the multitudes of water-snails that +they might be examined by the expert to see if any of +the obnoxious species were present. They had cleared +nearly half the beds when, yesterday afternoon, one +of the men working in the deepest part came upon some +bones, the appearance of which excited his suspicion. +Thereupon he called his mates, and they carefully +picked away the plants piecemeal, a process that soon +laid bare an unmistakable human hand lying on the +mud amongst the roots. Fortunately they had the +wisdom not to disturb the remains, but at once sent +off a message to the police. Very soon, an inspector +and a sergeant, accompanied by the divisional surgeon, +arrived on the scene, and were able to view the remains +lying as they had been found. And now another very +strange fact came to light; for it was seen that the +hand—a left one—lying on the mud was minus its third +finger. This is regarded by the police as a very important +fact as bearing on the question of identification, +seeing that the number of persons having the third +finger of the left hand missing must be quite small. +After a thorough examination on the spot, the bones +were carefully collected and conveyed to the mortuary, +where they now lie awaiting further inquiries. +</p> +<p> +"The divisional surgeon, Dr. Brandon, in an interview +with our representative, made the following statements: +</p> +<p> +"'The bones found are those of the left arm of a +middle-aged or elderly man about five feet eight inches +in height. All the bones of the arm are present, including +the scapula, or shoulder-blade, and the clavicle, or +collar-bone, but the three bones of the third finger are +missing.' +</p> +<p> +"'Is this a deformity or has the finger been cut +off?' our correspondent asked. +</p> +<p> +"'The finger has been amputated,' was the reply. +'If it had been absent from birth, the corresponding +hand bone, or metacarpal, would have been wanting +or deformed, whereas it is present and quite normal.' +</p> +<p> +"'How long have the bones been in the water?' +was the next question. +</p> +<p> +"'More than a year, I should say. They are quite +clean; there is not a vestige of the soft structures +left.' +</p> +<p> +"'Have you any theory as to how the arm came to +be deposited where it was found?' +</p> +<p> +"'I should rather not answer that question,' was +the guarded response. +</p> +<p> +"'One more question,' our correspondent urged. +'The ground landlord, Mr. John Bellingham; is not +he the gentleman who disappeared so mysteriously +some time ago?' +</p> +<p> +"'So I understand,' Dr. Brandon replied. +</p> +<p> +"'Can you tell me if Mr. Bellingham had lost the +third finger of his left hand?' +</p> +<p> +"'I cannot say,' said Dr. Brandon; and he added +with a smile, 'you had better ask the police.' +</p> +<p> +"That is how the matter stands at present. But we +understand that the police are making active inquiries +for any missing man who has lost the third finger of his +left hand, and if any of our readers know of such a person, +they are earnestly requested to communicate at +once, either with us or with the authorities. +</p> +<p> +"Also we believe that a systematic search is to be +made for further remains." +</p> +<p> +I laid the newspaper down and fell into a train of +reflection. It was certainly a most mysterious affair. +The thought that had evidently come to the reporter's +mind stole naturally into mine. Could these remains +be those of John Bellingham? It was obviously possible, +though I could not but see that the fact of the +bones having been found on his land, while it undoubtedly +furnished the suggestion, did not in any way +add to its probability. The connection was accidental +and in no wise relevant. +</p> +<p> +Then, too, there was the missing finger. No reference +to any such injury or deformity had been made in the +original report of the disappearance, though it could +hardly have been overlooked. But it was useless to +speculate without facts. I should be seeing Thorndyke +in the course of the next few days, and, undoubtedly, +if the discovery had any bearing upon the disappearance +of John Bellingham, I should hear of it. With +which reflection I rose from the table, and, adopting +the advice contained in the spurious Johnsonian quotation +proceeded to "take a walk in Fleet Street" before +settling down for the evening. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH6"><!-- CH6 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER VI +</h2> + +<h3> +SIDELIGHTS +</h3> +<p> +The association of coal with potatoes is one upon +which I have frequently speculated, without arriving +at any more satisfactory explanation than that both +products are of the earth, earthy. Of the connection +itself Barnard's practice furnished several instances +besides Mrs. Jablett's establishment in Fleur-de-Lys +Court, one of which was a dark and mysterious cavern +a foot below the level of the street, that burrowed +under an ancient house on the west side of Fetter Lane +—a crinkly, timber house of the three-decker type that +leaned back drunkenly from the road as if about to sit +down in its own back yard. +</p> +<p> +Passing this repository of the associated products +about ten o'clock in the morning, I perceived in the +shadow of the cavern no less a person than Miss Oman. +She saw me at the same moment, and beckoned peremptorily +with a hand that held a large Spanish onion. I +approached with a deferential smile. +</p> +<p> +"What a magnificent onion, Miss Oman! and how +generous of you to offer it to me—" +</p> +<p> +"I wasn't offering it to you. But there! Isn't it +just like a man—" +</p> +<p> +"Isn't what just like a man?" I interrupted. "If +you mean the onion—" +</p> +<p> +"I don't!" she snapped; "and I wish you wouldn't +talk such a parcel of nonsense. A grown man and a +member of a serious profession, too! You ought to +know better." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose I ought," I said reflectively. And she +continued: +</p> +<p> +"I called in at the surgery just now." +</p> +<p> +"To see me?" +</p> +<p> +"What else should I come for? Do you suppose +that I called to consult the bottle-boy?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly not, Miss Oman. So you find the lady +doctor no use, after all?" +</p> +<p> +Miss Oman gnashed her teeth at me (and very fine +teeth they were, too). +</p> +<p> +"I called," she said majestically, "on behalf of Miss +Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +My facetiousness evaporated instantly. "I hope +Miss Bellingham is not ill," I said with a sudden anxiety +that elicited a sardonic smile from Miss Oman. +</p> +<p> +"No," was the reply, "she is not ill, but she has cut +her hand rather badly. It's her right hand, too, and +she can't afford to lose the use of it, not being a great, +hulking, lazy, lolloping man. So you had better go +and put some stuff on it." +</p> +<p> +With this advice, Miss Oman whisked to the right-about +and vanished into the depths of the cavern like +the Witch of Wokey, while I hurried on to the surgery +to provide myself with the necessary instruments and +materials, and thence proceeded to Nevill's Court. +</p> +<p> +Miss Oman's juvenile maid-servant, who opened the +door to me, stated the existing conditions with epigrammatic +conciseness: +</p> +<p> +"Mr. Bellingham is hout, sir; but Miss Bellingham +is hin." +</p> +<p> +Having thus delivered herself she retreated towards +the kitchen and I ascended the stairs, at the head of +which I found Miss Bellingham awaiting me with her +right hand encased in what looked like a white boxing-glove. +</p> +<p> +"I am glad you have come," she said. "Phyllis—Miss +Oman, you know—has kindly bound up my hand, +but I should like you to see that it is all right." +</p> +<p> +We went into the sitting-room, where I laid out my +paraphernalia on the table while I inquired into the +particulars of the accident. +</p> +<p> +"It is most unfortunate that it should have +happened just now," she said, as I wrestled with one of +those remarkable feminine knots that, while they seem +to defy the utmost efforts of human ingenuity to untie, +yet have a singular habit of untying themselves at +inopportune moments. +</p> +<p> +"Why just now, in particular?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Because I have some specially important work to +do. A very learned lady who is writing a historical +book has commissioned me to collect all the literature +relating to the Tell el Amarna letters—the cuneiform +tablets, you know, of Amenhotep the Fourth." +</p> +<p> +"Well," I said soothingly, "I expect your hand will +soon be well." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, but that won't do. The work has to be done +immediately. I have to send in the completed notes +not later than this day week, and it will be quite +impossible. I am dreadfully disappointed." +</p> +<p> +By this time I had unwound the voluminous +wrappings and exposed the injury—a deep gash in the +palm that must have narrowly missed a good-sized +artery. Obviously the hand would be useless for fully +a week. +</p> +<p> +"I suppose," she said, "you couldn't patch it up +so that I could write with it?" +</p> +<p> +I shook my head. +</p> +<p> +"No, Miss Bellingham. I shall have to put it on a +splint. We can't run any risks with a deep wound like +this." +</p> +<p> +"Then I shall have to give up the commission, and +I don't know how my client will get the work done in +the time. You see, I am pretty well up in the literature +of Ancient Egypt; in fact, I was to receive special +payment on that account. And it would have been +such an interesting task, too. However, it can't be +helped." +</p> +<p> +I proceeded methodically with the application of the +dressings, and meanwhile reflected. It was evident that +she was deeply disappointed. Loss of work meant loss +of money, and it needed but a glance at her rusty +black dress to see that there was little margin for that. +Possibly, too, there was some special need to be met. +Her manner seemed almost to imply that there was. +And at this point I had a brilliant idea. +</p> +<p> +"I'm not sure that it can't be helped," said I. +</p> +<p> +She looked at me inquiringly, and I continued: "I +am going to make a proposition, and I shall ask you +to consider it with an open mind." +</p> +<p> +"That sounds rather portentous," said she; "but +I promise. What is it?" +</p> +<p> +"It is this: When I was a student I acquired the +useful art of writing shorthand. I am not a lightning +reporter, you understand, but I can take matter down +from dictation at quite respectable speed." +</p> +<p> +"Yes." +</p> +<p> +"Well, I have several hours free every day—usually, +the whole of the afternoon up to six or half-past—and +it occurs to me that if you were to go to the Museum +in the mornings you could get out your books, look up +passages (you could do that without using your right +hand), and put in book-marks. Then I could come +along in the afternoon and you could read out the +selected passages to me, and I could take them down in +shorthand. We should get through as much in a couple +of hours as you could in a day using longhand." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, but how kind of you, Doctor Berkeley!" she +exclaimed. "How very kind! Of course, I couldn't +think of taking up all your leisure in that way; but I +do appreciate your kindness very much." +</p> +<p> +I was rather chapfallen at this very definite refusal, +but persisted feebly: +</p> +<p> +"I wish you would. It may seem rather cheek for a +comparative stranger like me to make such a proposal +to a lady; but if you'd been a man—in these special +circumstances—I should have made it all the same, and +you would have accepted as a matter of course." +</p> +<p> +"I doubt that. At any rate, I am not a man. I +sometimes wish I were." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, I am sure you are much better as you are!" +I exclaimed, with such earnestness that we both laughed. +And at this moment Mr. Bellingham entered the room +carrying several large and evidently brand-new books +in a strap. +</p> +<p> +"Well, I'm sure!" he exclaimed genially; "here +are pretty goings on. Doctor and patient giggling like +a pair of schoolgirls! What's the joke?" +</p> +<p> +He thumped his parcel of books down on the table +and listened smilingly while my unconscious witticism +was expounded. +</p> +<p> +"The Doctor's quite right," he said. "You'll do as +you are, chick; but the Lord knows what sort of man +you would make. You take his advice and let well +alone." +</p> +<p> +Finding him in this genial frame of mind, I ventured +to explain my proposition to him and to enlist his +support. He considered it with attentive approval, +and when I had finished turned to his daughter. +</p> +<p> +"What is your objection, chick?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +"It would give Doctor Berkeley such a fearful lot +of work," she answered. +</p> +<p> +"It would give him a fearful lot of pleasure," I said. +"It would, really." +</p> +<p> +"Then why not?" said Mr. Bellingham. "We don't +mind being under an obligation to the Doctor, do we?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, it wasn't that!" she exclaimed hastily. +</p> +<p> +"Then take him at his word. He means it. It is a +kind action and he'll like doing it, I'm sure. That's +all right, Doctor; she accepts, don't you, chick?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, if you say so, I do; and most thankfully." +</p> +<p> +She accompanied the acceptance with a gracious +smile that was in itself a large payment on account, +and when we had made the necessary arrangements, +I hurried away in a state of the most perfect satisfaction +to finish my morning's work and order an early +lunch. +</p> +<p> +When I called for her a couple of hours later I found +her waiting in the garden with the shabby handbag, +of which I relieved her, and we set forth together, +watched jealously by Miss Oman, who had accompanied +her to the gate. +</p> +<p> +As I walked up the court with this wonderful maid +by my side I could hardly believe in my good fortune. +By her presence and my own resulting happiness the +mean surroundings became glorified and the commonest +objects transfigured into things of beauty. What a +delightful thoroughfare, for instance, was Fetter Lane, +with its quaint charm and mediaeval grace! I snuffed +the cabbage-laden atmosphere and seemed to breathe +the scent of the asphodel. Holborn was even as the +Elysian Fields; the omnibus that bore us westward +was a chariot of glory; and the people who swarmed +verminously on the pavements bore the semblance of +the children of light. +</p> +<p> +Love is a foolish thing judged by workaday standards, +and the thoughts and actions of lovers foolish +beyond measure. But the workaday standard is the +wrong one, after all; for the utilitarian mind does but +busy itself with the trivial and transitory interests of +life, behind which looms the great and everlasting reality +of the love of man and woman. There is more significance +in a nightingale's song in the hush of a summer +night than in all the wisdom of Solomon (who, by the +way, was not without his little experiences of the tender +passion). +</p> +<p> +The janitor in the little glass box by the entrance +to the library inspected us and passed us on, with a +silent benediction, to the lobby, whence (when I had +handed my stick to a bald-headed demigod and +received a talismanic disc in exchange) we entered the +enormous rotunda of the reading-room. +</p> +<p> +I have often thought that, if some lethal vapour of +highly preservative properties—such as formaldehyde, +for instance—could be shed into the atmosphere of +this apartment, the entire and complete collection of +books and bookworms would be well worth preserving, +for the enlightenment of posterity, as a sort of anthropological +appendix to the main collection of the +Museum. For, surely, nowhere else in the world are so +many strange and abnormal human beings gathered +together in one place. And a curious question that +must have occurred to many observers is: Whence do +these singular creatures come, and whither do they go +when the very distinct-faced clock (adjusted to literary +eye-sight) proclaims closing time? The tragic-faced +gentleman, for instance, with the corkscrew ringlets +that bob up and down like spiral springs as he walks? +Or the short, elderly gentleman in the black cassock and +bowler hat, who shatters your nerves by turning suddenly +and revealing himself as a middle-aged woman? +Whither do they go? One never sees them elsewhere. +Do they steal away at closing time into the depths of +the Museum and hide themselves until morning in +sarcophagi or mummy cases? Or do they creep through +spaces in the book-shelves and spend the night behind +the volumes in a congenial atmosphere of leather and +antique paper? Who can say? What I do know is +that when Ruth Bellingham entered the reading-room +she appeared in comparison with these like a creature +of another order; even as the head of Antinous, which +formerly stood (it has since been moved) amidst the +portrait-busts of the Roman Emperors, seemed like the +head of a god set in a portrait gallery of illustrious +baboons. +</p> +<p> +"What have we got to do?" I asked when we had +found a vacant seat. "Do you want to look up the +catalogue?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I have the tickets in my bag. The books are +waiting in the 'kept books' department." +</p> +<p> +I placed my hat on the leather-covered shelf, dropped +her gloves into it—how delightfully intimate and +companionable it seemed!—altered the numbers on the +tickets, and then we proceeded together to the "kept +books" desk to collect the volumes that contained the +material for our day's work. +</p> +<p> +It was a blissful afternoon. Two and a half hours of +happiness unalloyed did I spend at that shiny, leather-clad +desk, guiding my nimble pen across the pages of +the note-book. It introduced me to a new world—a +world in which love and learning, sweet intimacy and +crusted archaeology, were mingled into the oddest, most +whimsical, and most delicious confection that the mind +of man can conceive. Hitherto, these recondite +histories had been far beyond my ken. Of the wonderful +heretic, Amenhotep the Fourth, I had barely heard—at +the most he had been a mere name; the Hittites a +mythical race of undetermined habitat; while cuneiform +tablets had presented themselves to my mind merely as +an uncouth kind of fossil biscuit suited to the digestion +of a pre-historic ostrich. +</p> +<p> +Now all this was changed. As we sat with our chairs +creaking together and she whispered the story of those +stirring times into my receptive ear—talking is strictly +forbidden in the reading-room—the disjointed +fragments arranged themselves into a romance of supreme +fascination. Egyptian, Babylonian, Aramaean, Hittite, +Memphis, Babylon, Hamath, Megiddo—I swallowed +them all thankfully, wrote them down and asked for +more. Only once did I disgrace myself. An elderly +clergyman of ascetic and acidulous aspect had passed +us with a glance of evident disapproval, clearly setting +us down as intruding philanderers; and when I +contrasted the parson's probable conception of the whispered +communications that were being poured into my +ear so tenderly and confidentially with the dry reality, +I chuckled aloud. But my fair task-mistress only +paused, with her finger on the page, smilingly to rebuke +me, and then went on with the dictation. She was +certainly a Tartar for work. +</p> +<p> +It was a proud moment for me when, in response to +my interrogative "Yes?" my companion said "That +is all" and closed the book. We had extracted the +pith and marrow of six considerable volumes in two +hours and a half. +</p> +<p> +"You have been better than your word," she said. +"It would have taken me two full days of really hard +work to make the notes that you have written down +since we commenced. I don't know how to thank +you." +</p> +<p> +"There's no need to. I've enjoyed myself and polished +up my shorthand. What is the next thing? We +shall want some books for to-morrow, shan't we?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I have made out a list, so if you will come +with me to the catalogue desk I will look out the numbers +and ask you to write the tickets." +</p> +<p> +The selection of a fresh batch of authorities occupied +us for another quarter of an hour, and then, having +handed in the volumes that we had squeezed dry, we +took our way out of the reading-room. +</p> +<p> +"Which way shall we go?" she asked as we passed +out of the gate, where stood a massive policeman, like +the guardian angel at the gate of Paradise (only, thank +Heaven! he bore no flaming sword forbidding reentry). +</p> +<p> +"We are going," I replied, "to Museum Street, where +is a milkshop in which one can get an excellent cup +of tea." +</p> +<p> +She looked as if she would have demurred, but eventually +followed obediently, and we were soon seated side +by side at a little marble-topped table, retracing the +ground that we had covered in the afternoon's work +and discussing various points of interest over a joint +teapot. +</p> +<p> +"Have you been doing this sort of work long?" I +asked as she handed me my second cup of tea. +</p> +<p> +"Professionally," she answered, "only about two +years; since we broke up our home, in fact. But long +before that I used to come to the Museum with my +Uncle John—the one who disappeared, you know, in +that dreadfully mysterious way—and help him to look +up references. We were quite good friends, he and I." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose he was a very learned man?" I suggested. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, in a certain way; in the way of the better-class +collector he was very learned indeed. He knew +the contents of every museum in the world, in so far +as they were connected with Egyptian antiquities, and +had studied them specimen by specimen. Consequently, +as Egyptology is largely a museum science, he +was a learned Egyptologist. But his real interest was +in things rather than events. Of course, he knew a +great deal—a very great deal—about Egyptian history, +but still he was, before all, a collector." +</p> +<p> +"And what will happen to his collection if he is +really dead?" +</p> +<p> +"The greater part of it goes to the British Museum +by his will, and the remainder he has left to his solicitor, +Mr. Jellicoe." +</p> +<p> +"To Mr. Jellicoe! Why, what will Mr. Jellicoe do +with Egyptian antiquities?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, he is an Egyptologist, too, and quite an enthusiast. +He has a really fine collection of scarabs and +other small objects such as it is possible to keep in +a private house. I have always thought that it was +his enthusiasm for everything Egyptian that brought +him and my uncle together on terms of such intimacy; +though I believe he is an excellent lawyer, and he is +certainly a very discreet, cautious man." +</p> +<p> +"Is he? I shouldn't have thought so, judging by +your uncle's will." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, but that was not Mr. Jellicoe's fault. He assures +us that he entreated my uncle to let him draw up +a fresh document with more reasonable provisions. But +he says Uncle John was immovable; and he really <i>was</i> +a rather obstinate man. Mr. Jellicoe repudiates any +responsibility in the matter. He washes his hands of +the whole affair, and says that it is the will of a lunatic. +And so it is. I was glancing through it only a night or +two ago, and really I cannot conceive how a sane man +could have written such nonsense." +</p> +<p> +"You have a copy, then?" I asked eagerly, remembering +Thorndyke's parting instructions. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. Would you like to see it? I know my father +has told you about it, and it is worth reading as a +curiosity of perverseness." +</p> +<p> +"I should very much like to show it to my friend, +Doctor Thorndyke," I replied. "He said that he would +be interested to read it and learn the exact provisions; +and it might be well to let him, and hear what he has +to say about it." +</p> +<p> +"I see no objection," she rejoined; "but you know +what my father is: his horror, I mean, of what he calls +'cadging for advice gratis.'" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, but he need have no scruples on that score. +Doctor Thorndyke wants to see the will because the case +interests him. He is an enthusiast, you know, and he +put the request as a personal favour to himself." +</p> +<p> +"That is very nice and delicate of him, and I will +explain the position to my father. If he is willing for +Doctor Thorndyke to see the copy, I will send or bring +it over this evening. Have we finished?" +</p> +<p> +I regretfully admitted that we had, and, when I had +paid the modest reckoning, we sallied forth, turning +back with one accord into Great Russell Street to avoid +the noise and bustle of the larger thoroughfare. +</p> +<p> +"What sort of man was your uncle?" I asked presently, +as we walked along the quiet, dignified street. +And then I added hastily: "I hope you don't think me +inquisitive, but, to my mind, he presents himself as a +kind of mysterious abstraction; the unknown quantity +of a legal problem." +</p> +<p> +"My Uncle John," she answered reflectively, "was +a very peculiar man, rather obstinate, very self-willed, +what people call 'masterful,' and decidedly wrong-headed +and unreasonable." +</p> +<p> +"That is certainly the impression that the terms +of his will convey," I said. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; and not the will only. There was the absurd +allowance that he made my father. That was a ridiculous +arrangement, and very unfair, too. He ought to +have divided up the property as my grandfather intended. +And yet he was by no means ungenerous, +only he would have his own way, and his own way was +very commonly the wrong way. +</p> +<p> +"I remember," she continued, after a short pause, +"a very odd instance of his wrong-headedness and +obstinacy. It was a small matter, but very typical of +him. He had in his collection a beautiful little ring +of the eighteenth dynasty. It was said to have belonged +to Queen Ti, the mother of our friend Amenhotep +the Fourth; but I don't think that could have +been so, because the device on it was the Eye of Osiris, +and Ti, as you know, was an Aten-worshipper. However, +it was a very charming ring, and Uncle John, +who had a queer sort of devotion to the mystical Eye +of Osiris, commissioned a very clever goldsmith to make +two exact copies of it, one for himself and one for me. +The goldsmith naturally wanted to take the measurements +of our fingers, but this Uncle John would not +hear of; the rings were to be exact copies, and an +exact copy must be the same size as the original. You +can imagine the result; my ring was so loose that +I couldn't keep it on my finger, and Uncle John's +was so tight that, though he did manage to get it on, +he was never able to get it off again. And it was only +the circumstance that his left hand was decidedly +smaller than his right that made it possible for him to +wear it at all." +</p> +<p> +"So you never wore your copy?" +</p> +<p> +"No. I wanted to have it altered to make it fit, +but he objected strongly; so I put it away, and have +it in a box still." +</p> +<p> +"He must have been an extraordinarily pig-headed +old fellow," I remarked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; he was very tenacious. He annoyed my father +a good deal, too, by making unnecessary alterations in +the house in Queen Square when he fitted up his museum. +We have a certain sentiment with regard to that house. +Our people have lived in it ever since it was built, when +the square was first laid out in the reign of Queen Anne, +after whom the square was named. It is a dear old +house. Would you like to see it? We are quite near it +now." +</p> +<p> +I assented eagerly. If it had been a coal-shed or +a fried-fish shop I would still have visited it with +pleasure, for the sake of prolonging our walk; but I +was also really interested in this old house as a part of +the background of the mystery of the vanished John +Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +We crossed into Cosmo Place, with its quaint row +of the, now rare, cannon-shaped iron posts, and passing +through stood for a few moments looking into the +peaceful, stately old square. A party of boys disported +themselves noisily on the range of stone posts +that form a bodyguard round the ancient lamp-surmounted +pump, but otherwise the place was wrapped +in dignified repose suited to its age and station. And +very pleasant it looked on this summer afternoon, with +the sunlight gilding the foliage of its wide-spreading +plane trees and lighting up the warm-toned brick of +the house-fronts. We walked slowly down the shady +west side, near the middle of which my companion +halted. +</p> +<p> +"This is the house," she said. "It looks gloomy +and forsaken now; but it must have been a delightful +house in the days when my ancestors could look out of +the windows through the open end of the square across +the fields and meadows to the heights of Hampstead +and Highgate." +</p> +<p> +She stood at the edge of the pavement looking up +with a curious wistfulness at the old house; a very +pathetic figure, I thought, with her handsome face and +proud carriage, her threadbare dress and shabby gloves, +standing at the threshold of the home that had been +her family's for generations, that should now have been +hers, and that was shortly to pass away into the hands +of strangers. +</p> +<p> +I, too, looked up at it with a strange interest, impressed +by something gloomy and forbidding in its +aspect. The windows were shuttered from basement +to attic, and no sign of life was visible. Silent, neglected, +desolate, it breathed an air of tragedy. It +seemed to mourn in sackcloth and ashes for its lost +master. The massive door within the splendid carven +portico was crusted with grime, and seemed to have +passed out of use as completely as the ancient lamp-irons +or the rusted extinguishers wherein the footmen +were wont to quench their torches when some Bellingham +dame was borne up the steps in her gilded chair, +in the days of good Queen Anne. +</p> +<p> +It was in a somewhat sobered frame of mind that +we presently turned away and started homeward by +way of Great Ormond Street. My companion was +deeply thoughtful, relapsing for a while into that sombreness +of manner that had so impressed me when I +first met her. Nor was I without a certain sympathetic +pensiveness; as if, from the great, silent house, the +spirit of the vanished man had issued forth to bear us +company. +</p> +<p> +But still it was a delightful walk, and I was sorry +when at last we arrived at the entrance to Nevill's +Court, and Miss Bellingham halted and held out her +hand. +</p> +<p> +"Good-bye," she said; "and many, many thanks +for your invaluable help. Shall I take the bag?" +</p> +<p> +"If you want it. But I must take out the note-books." +</p> +<p> +"Why must you take them?" she asked. +</p> +<p> +"Why, haven't I got to copy the notes out into longhand?" +</p> +<p> +An expression of utter consternation spread over her +face; in fact, she was so completely taken aback that +she forgot to release my hand. +</p> +<p> +"Heavens!" she exclaimed. "How idiotic of me! +But it is impossible, Doctor Berkeley! It will take +you hours!" +</p> +<p> +"It is perfectly possible, and it is going to be done; +otherwise the notes would be useless. Do you want the +bag?" +</p> +<p> +"No, of course not. But I am positively appalled. +Hadn't you better give up the idea?" +</p> +<p> +"And is this the end of our collaboration?" I exclaimed +tragically, giving her hand a final squeeze +(whereby she became suddenly aware of its position, +and withdrew it rather hastily). "Would you throw +away a whole afternoon's work? I won't, certainly; +so, good-bye until to-morrow. I shall turn up in the +reading-room as early as I can. You had better take +the tickets. Oh, and you won't forget about the copy +of the will for Doctor Thorndyke, will you?" +</p> +<p> +"No; if my father agrees, you shall have it this +evening." +</p> +<p> +She took the tickets from me, and, thanking me yet +again, retired into the court. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH7"><!-- CH7 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER VII +</h2> + +<h3> +JOHN BELLINGHAM'S WILL +</h3> +<p> +The task upon which I had embarked so lightheartedly, +when considered in cold blood, did certainly appear, +as Miss Bellingham had said, rather appalling. The +result of two and a half hours' pretty steady work at an +average speed of nearly a hundred words a minute, +would take some time to transcribe into longhand; +and if the notes were to be delivered punctually on the +morrow, the sooner I got to work the better. +</p> +<p> +Recognising this truth, I lost no time, but, within +five minutes of my arrival at the surgery, was seated +at the writing-table with my copy before me busily converting +the sprawling, inexpressive characters into +good, legible round-hand. +</p> +<p> +The occupation was by no means unpleasant, apart +from the fact that it was a labour of love; for the +sentences, as I picked them up, were fragrant with +reminiscences of the gracious whisper in which they +had first come to me. And then the matter itself was +full of interest. I was gaining a fresh outlook on life, +was crossing the threshold of a new world (which was +<i>her</i> world); and so the occasional interruptions from +patients, while they gave me intervals of enforced rest, +were far from welcome. +</p> +<p> +The evening wore on without any sign from Nevill's +Court, and I began to fear that Mr. Bellingham's +scruples had proved insurmountable. Not, I am afraid, +that I was so much concerned for the copy of the will +as for the possibility of a visit, no matter howsoever +brief, from my fair employer; and when, on the stroke +of half-past seven, the surgery door flew open with +startling abruptness, my fears were allayed and my +hopes shattered simultaneously. For it was Miss +Oman who stalked in, holding out a blue foolscap +envelope with a warlike air as if it were an ultimatum. +</p> +<p> +"I've brought you this from Mr. Bellingham," she +said. "There's a note inside." +</p> +<p> +"May I read the note, Miss Oman?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Bless the man!" she exclaimed. "What else +would you do with it? Isn't that what I brought it +for?" +</p> +<p> +I supposed it was; and, thanking her for her gracious +permission, I glanced through the note—a few lines +authorising me to show the copy of the will to Dr. +Thorndyke. When I looked up from the paper I +found her eyes fixed on me with an expression critical +and rather disapproving. +</p> +<p> +"You seem to be making yourself mighty agreeable +in a certain quarter," she remarked. +</p> +<p> +"I make myself universally agreeable. It is my +nature to." +</p> +<p> +"Ha!" she snorted. +</p> +<p> +"Don't you find me rather agreeable?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Oily," said Miss Oman. And then, with a sour +smile at the open note-books, she remarked: +</p> +<p> +"You've got some work to do now; quite a change +for you." +</p> +<p> +"A delightful change, Miss Oman. 'For Satan +findeth'—but no doubt you are acquainted with the +philosophical works of Doctor Watts?" +</p> +<p> +"If you are referring to 'idle hands,'" she replied, +"I'll give you a bit of advice, Don't you keep that +hand idle any longer than is really necessary. I have +my suspicions about that splint—oh, you know what +I mean," and before I had time to reply, she had taken +advantage of the entrance of a couple of patients to +whisk out of the surgery with the abruptness that had +distinguished her arrival. +</p> +<p> +The evening consultations were considered to be over +by half-past eight; at which time Adolphus was wont, +with exemplary punctuality, to close the outer door +of the surgery. To-night he was not less prompt +than usual; and having performed this, his last daily +office, and turned down the surgery gas, he reported +the fact and took his departure. +</p> +<p> +As his retreating footsteps died away and the slamming +of the outer door announced his final disappearance, +I sat up and stretched myself. The envelope +containing the copy of the will lay on the table, and I +considered it thoughtfully. It ought to be conveyed +to Thorndyke with as little delay as possible, and, as +it certainly could not be trusted out of my hands, it +ought to be conveyed by me. +</p> +<p> +I looked at the note-books. Nearly two hours' work +had made a considerable impression on the matter that +I had to transcribe, but still, a great deal of the task +yet remained to be done. However, I reflected, I could +put in a couple of hours more before going to bed and +there would be an hour or two to spare in the morning. +Finally I locked the note-books, open as they were, +in the writing-table drawer, and slipping the envelope +into my pocket, set out for the Temple. +</p> +<p> +The soft chime of the Treasury clock was telling out, +in confidential tones, the third quarter as I wrapped +with my stick on the forbidding "oak" of my friends' +chambers. There was no response, nor had I perceived +any gleam of light from the windows as I approached, +and I was considering the advisability of trying the +laboratory on the next floor, when footsteps on the +stone stairs and familiar voices gladdened my ear. +</p> +<p> +"Hallo, Berkeley!" said Thorndyke, "do we find +you waiting like a Peri at the gates of Paradise? +Polton is upstairs, you know, tinkering at one of his +inventions. If you ever find the nest empty, you had +better go up and bang at the laboratory door. He's +always there in the evenings." +</p> +<p> +"I haven't been waiting long," said I, "and I was +just thinking of rousing him up when you came." +</p> +<p> +"That was right," said Thorndyke, turning up the +gas. "And what news do you bring? Do I see a +blue envelope sticking out of your pocket?" +</p> +<p> +"You do." +</p> +<p> +"Is it a copy of the will?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +I answered "yes," and added that I had full permission +to show it to him. +</p> +<p> +"What did I tell you?" exclaimed Jervis. "Didn't +I say that he would get the copy for us if it existed?" +</p> +<p> +"We admit the excellence of your prognosis," said +Thorndyke, "but there is no need to be boastful. +Have you read through the document, Berkeley?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I haven't taken it out of the envelope." +</p> +<p> +"Then it will be equally new to us all, and we shall +see if it tallies with your description." +</p> +<p> +He placed three easy chairs at a convenient distance +from the light, and Jervis, watching him with a smile, +remarked: +</p> +<p> +"Now Thorndyke is going to enjoy himself. To +him, a perfectly unintelligible will is a thing of beauty +and a joy for ever; especially if associated with some +kind of recondite knavery." +</p> +<p> +"I don't know," said I, "that this will is particularly +unintelligible. The mischief seems to be that it +is rather too intelligible. However, here it is," and I +handed the envelope to Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"I suppose that we can depend on this copy," said +the latter, as he drew out the document and glanced +at it. "Oh, yes," he added, "I see it is copied by +Godfrey Bellingham, compared with the original and +certified correct. In that case I will get you to read it +out slowly, Jervis, and I will make a rough copy to +keep for reference. Let us make ourselves comfortable +and light our pipes before we begin." +</p> +<p> +He provided himself with a writing-pad, and, when +we had seated ourselves and got our pipes well alight, +Jervis opened the document, and with a premonitory +"hem!" commenced the reading. +</p> +<p> +"In the name of God Amen. This is the last will and +testament of me John Bellingham of number 141 Queen +Square in the parish of St. George Bloomsbury London +in the county of Middlesex Gentleman made this twenty +first day of September in the year of our Lord one +thousand eight hundred and ninety-two. +</p> +<p> +"1. I give and bequeath unto Arthur Jellicoe of +number 184 New Square Lincoln's Inn London in the +county of Middlesex Attorney-at-law the whole of my +collection of seals and scarabs and those my cabinets +marked B, C, and D together with the contents thereof +and the sum of two thousand pounds sterling free of +legacy duty. +</p> +<p> +"Unto the Trustees of the British Museum the +residue of my collection of antiquities. +</p> +<p> +"Unto my cousin George Hurst of The Poplars Eltham +in the county of Kent the sum of five thousand +pounds free of legacy duty and unto my brother Godfrey +Bellingham or if he should die before the occurrence +of my death unto his daughter Ruth Bellingham +the residue of my estate and effects real and personal +subject to the conditions set forth hereinafter namely: +</p> +<p> +"2. That my body shall be deposited with those of +my ancestors in the churchyard appertaining to the +church and parish of St. George the Martyr or if that +shall not be possible, in some other churchyard, cemetery, +burial ground, church, chapel or other authorised +place for the reception of the bodies of the dead situate +within or appertaining to the parishes of St. Andrew +above the Bars and St. George the Martyr or St. +George Bloomsbury and St. Giles in the Fields. But if +the conditions in this clause be not carried out then +</p> +<p> +"3. I give and devise the said residue of my estate +and effects unto my cousin George Hurst aforesaid +and I hereby revoke all wills and codicils made by me +at any time heretofore and I appoint Arthur Jellicoe +aforesaid to be the executor of this my will jointly with +the principal beneficiary and residuary legatee that is +to say with the aforesaid Godfrey Bellingham if the +conditions set forth hereinbefore in clause 2 shall be +duly carried out but with the aforesaid George Hurst +if the said conditions in the said clause 2 be not carried +out. +</p> +<center> +"JOHN BELLINGHAM. +</center> +<p> +"Signed by the said testator John Bellingham in +the presence of us present at the same time who at his +request and in his presence and in the presence of each +other have subscribed our names as witnesses. +</p> +<p> +"Frederick Wilton, 16 Medford Road, London, N., +clerk. +</p> +<p> +"James Barker, 32 Wadbury Crescent, London, +S.W., clerk." +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Jervis, laying down the document as +Thorndyke detached the last sheet from his writing-pad, +"I have met with a good many idiotic wills, but +this one can give them all points. I don't see how it is +ever going to be administered. One of the two executors +is a mere abstraction—a sort of algebraical problem +with no answer." +</p> +<p> +"I think that difficulty could be overcome," said +Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"I don't see how," retorted Jervis. "If the body +is deposited in a certain place, A is the executor; if it +is somewhere else, B is the executor. But, as you cannot +produce the body, and no one has the least idea where +it is, it is impossible to prove either that it is or that it +is not in any specified place." +</p> +<p> +"You are magnifying the difficulty, Jervis," said +Thorndyke. "The body may, of course, be anywhere +in the entire world, but the place where it is lying is +either inside or outside the general boundary of these +two parishes. If it has been deposited within the +boundary of those two parishes, the fact must be ascertainable +by examining the burial certificates issued +since the date when the missing man was last seen alive +and by consulting the registers of those specified places +of burial. I think that if no record can be found of +any such interment within the boundary of those two +parishes, that fact will be taken by the Court as proof +that no such interment has taken place, and that therefore +the body must have been deposited elsewhere. +Such a decision would constitute George Hurst the +co-executor and residuary legatee." +</p> +<p> +"That is cheerful for your friends, Berkeley," Jervis +remarked, "for we may take it as pretty certain that +the body has not been deposited in any of the places +named." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I agreed gloomily, "I'm afraid there is very +little doubt of that. But what an ass the fellow must +have been to make such a to-do about his beastly +carcass? What the deuce could it have mattered +to him where it was dumped, when he had done +with it?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke chuckled softly. "Thus the irreverent +youth of to-day," said he. "But yours is hardly a fair +comment, Berkeley. Our training makes us materialists, +and puts us a little out of sympathy with those in +whom primitive beliefs and emotions survive. A worthy +priest who came to look at our dissecting-room expressed +surprise to me that students, thus constantly +in the presence of relics of mortality, should be able to +think of anything but the resurrection and the life hereafter. +He was a bad psychologist. There is nothing +so dead as a dissecting-room 'subject'; and the contemplation +of the human body in the process of being +quietly taken to pieces—being resolved into its structural +units like a worn-out clock or an old engine in the +Mr. Rapper's yard—is certainly not conducive to a vivid +realisation of the doctrine of the resurrection." +</p> +<p> +"No; but this absurd anxiety to be buried in some +particular place has nothing to do with religious belief; +it is mere silly sentiment." +</p> +<p> +"It is sentiment, I admit," said Thorndyke, "but +I wouldn't call it silly. The feeling is so widespread in +time and space that we must look on it with respect +as something inherent in human nature. Think—as +doubtless John Bellingham did—of the ancient Egyptians, +whose chief aspiration was that of everlasting +repose for the dead. See the trouble they took to +achieve it. Think of the Great Pyramid, or that of +Amenemhat the Fourth with its labyrinth of false passages +and its sealed and hidden sepulchral chamber. +Think of Jacob, borne after death all those hundreds +of weary miles in order that he might sleep with his +fathers, and then remember Shakespeare and his solemn +adjuration to posterity to let him rest undisturbed in +his grave. No, Berkeley, it is not a silly sentiment. +I am as indifferent as you as to what becomes of my +body 'when I have done with it,' to use your irreverent +phrase; but I recognise the solicitude that some other +men display on the subject as a natural feeling that has +to be taken seriously." +</p> +<p> +"But even so," I said, "if this man had a hankering +for a freehold residence in some particular bone-yard, +he might have gone about the business in a more reasonable +way." +</p> +<p> +"There I am entirely with you," Thorndyke replied. +"It is the absurd way in which this provision is worded +that not only creates all the trouble but also makes the +whole document so curiously significant in view of the +testator's disappearance." +</p> +<p> +"How significant?" Jervis demanded eagerly. +</p> +<p> +"Let us consider the provisions of the will point by +point," said Thorndyke; "and first note that the +testator commanded the services of a very capable +lawyer." +</p> +<p> +"But Mr. Jellicoe disapproved of the will," said +I; "in fact, he protested strongly against the form +of it." +</p> +<p> +"We will bear that in mind, too," Thorndyke replied. +"And now with reference to what we may call +the contentious clauses: the first thing that strikes us +is their preposterous injustice. Godfrey's inheritance +is made conditional on a particular disposal of the +testator's body. But this is a matter not necessarily +under Godfrey's control. The testator might have +been lost at sea, or killed in a fire or explosion, or have +died abroad and been buried where his grave could not +be identified. There are numerous probable contingencies +besides the improbable one that has happened, +that might prevent the body from being recovered. +</p> +<p> +"But even if the body had been recovered, there +is another difficulty. The places of burial in the +parishes named have all been closed for many years. +It would be impossible to reopen any of them without +a special faculty, and I doubt whether such a faculty +would be granted. Possibly cremation might meet the +difficulty, but even that is doubtful; and, in any case, +the matter would not be in the control of Godfrey +Bellingham. Yet, if the required interment should +prove impossible, he is to be deprived of his legacy." +</p> +<p> +"It is a monstrous and absurd injustice," I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"It is," Thorndyke agreed; "but this is nothing to +the absurdity that comes to light when we consider +clauses two and three in detail. Observe that the +testator presumably wished to be buried in a certain place; +also he wished that his brother should benefit under +the will. Let us take the first point and see how he +has set about securing the accomplishment of what he +desired. Now, if we read clauses two and three carefully, +we shall see that he has rendered it virtually +impossible that his wishes can be carried out. He desires +to be buried in a certain place and makes Godfrey +responsible for his being so buried. But he gives Godfrey +no power or authority to carry out the provision, +and places insuperable obstacles in his way. For until +Godfrey is an executor, he has no power or authority +to carry out the provisions: and until the provisions +are carried out, he does not become an executor." +</p> +<p> +"It is a preposterous muddle," exclaimed Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, but that is not the worst of it," Thorndyke +continued. "The moment John Bellingham dies, his +dead body has come into existence; and it is 'deposited' +for the time being, wherever he happens to +have died. But unless he should happen to have died +in one of the places of burial mentioned—which is in +the highest degree unlikely—his body will be, for the +time being, 'deposited' in some place other than those +specified. In that case clause two is—for the time +being—not complied with, and consequently George +Hurst becomes, automatically, the co-executor. +</p> +<p> +"But will George Hurst carry out the provisions of +clause two? Probably not. Why should he? The +will contains no instructions to that effect. It throws +the whole duty on Godfrey. On the other hand, if he +should carry out clause two, what happens? He ceases +to be an executor and he loses a legacy of some seventy +thousand pounds. We may be pretty certain that he +will do nothing of the kind. So that, on considering +the two clauses, we see that the wishes of the testator +could only be carried out in the unlikely event of his +dying in one of the burial-places mentioned, or his body +being conveyed immediately after death to a public +mortuary in one of the said parishes. In any other +event, it is virtually certain that he will be buried in +some place other than that which he desired, and that +his brother will be left absolutely without provision +or recognition." +</p> +<p> +"John Bellingham could never have intended that," +I said. +</p> +<p> +"Clearly not," agreed Thorndyke; "the provisions +of the will furnish internal evidence that he did not. +You note that he bequeathed five thousand pounds to +George Hurst, in the event of clause two being carried +out; but he has made no bequest to his brother in the +event of its not being carried out. Obviously, he had +not entertained the possibility of this contingency at +all. He assumed, as a matter of course, that the conditions +of clause two would be fulfilled, and regarded +the conditions themselves as a mere formality." +</p> +<p> +"But," Jervis objected, "Jellicoe must have seen +the danger of a miscarriage and pointed it out to his +client." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly," said Thorndyke. "There is the mystery. +We understand that he objected strenuously, +and that John Bellingham was obdurate. Now it is +perfectly understandable that a man should adhere +obstinately to the most stupid and perverse disposition +of his property; but that a man should persist +in retaining a particular form of words after it has been +proved to him that the use of such form will almost +certainly result in the defeat of his own wishes; that, +I say, is a mystery that calls for very careful consideration." +</p> +<p> +"If Jellicoe had been an interested party," said +Jervis, "one would have suspected him of lying low. +But the form of clause two doesn't affect him at all." +</p> +<p> +"No," said Thorndyke; "the person who stands to +profit by the muddle is George Hurst. But we understand +that he was unacquainted with the terms of the +will, and there is certainly nothing to suggest that he +is in any way responsible for it." +</p> +<p> +"The practical question is," said I, "what is going +to happen? and what can be done for the Bellinghams?" +</p> +<p> +"The probability is," Thorndyke replied, "that the +next move will be made by Hurst. He is the party +immediately interested. He will probably apply to the +Court for permission to presume death and administer +the will." +</p> +<p> +"And what will the Court do?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke smiled drily. "Now you are asking a +very pretty conundrum. The decisions of Courts depend +on idiosyncrasies of temperament that no one can +foresee. But one may say that a Court does not lightly +grant permission to presume death. There will be a +rigorous inquiry—and a decidedly unpleasant one, I +suspect—and the evidence will be reviewed by the judge +with a strong predisposition to regard the testator +as being still alive. On the other hand, the known +facts point very distinctly to the probability that he +is dead; and, if the will were less complicated and all +the interested parties were unanimous in supporting the +application, I don't see why it might not be granted. +But it will clearly be to the interest of Godfrey to +oppose the application, unless he can show that the +conditions of clause two have been complied with—which +it is virtually certain that he can not; and he +may be able to bring forward reasons for believing +John to be still alive. But even if he is unable to do +this, inasmuch as it is pretty clear that he was intended +to be the chief beneficiary, his opposition is likely to +have considerable weight with the Court." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, is it?" I exclaimed eagerly. "Then that accounts +for a very peculiar proceeding on the part of +Hurst. I have stupidly forgotten to tell you about it. +He has been trying to come to a private agreement +with Godfrey Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"Indeed!" said Thorndyke. "What sort of agreement?" +</p> +<p> +"His proposal was this: that Godfrey should support +him and Jellicoe in an application to the Court for +permission to presume death and to administer the +will, and that, if it was successful, Hurst should pay +him four hundred pounds a year for life: the arrangement +to hold good in all eventualities." +</p> +<p> +"By which he means?" +</p> +<p> +"That if the body should be discovered at any +future time, so that the conditions of clause two could +be carried out, Hurst should still retain the property +and continue to pay Godfrey the four hundred a year +for life." +</p> +<p> +"Hey ho!" exclaimed Thorndyke; "that is a queer +proposal; a very queer proposal indeed." +</p> +<p> +"Not to say fishy," added Jervis. "I don't fancy +the Court would look with approval on that little +arrangement." +</p> +<p> +"The law does not look with much favour on any +little arrangements that aim at getting behind the provisions +of a will," Thorndyke replied; "though there +would be nothing to complain of in this proposal if it +were not for the reference to 'all eventualities.' If a +will is hopelessly impracticable, it is not unreasonable +or improper for the various beneficiaries to make such +private arrangements among themselves as may seem +necessary to avoid useless litigation and delay in administering +the will. If, for instance, Hurst had proposed +to pay four hundred a year to Godfrey so long +as the body remained undiscovered on condition that, +in the event of its discovery, Godfrey should pay him +a like sum for life, there would have been nothing to +comment upon. It would have been an ordinary sporting +chance. But the reference to 'all eventualities' is +an entirely different matter. Of course, it may be mere +greediness, but all the same, it suggests some very +curious reflections." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, it does," said Jervis. "I wonder if he has +any reason to expect that the body will be found? +Of course it doesn't follow that he has. He may be +merely taking the opportunity offered by the other +man's poverty to make sure of the bulk of the property +whatever happens. But it is uncommonly sharp practice, +to say the least." +</p> +<p> +"Do I understand that Godfrey declined the proposal?" +Thorndyke asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, he did, very emphatically; and I fancy that +the two gentlemen proceeded to exchange opinions on +the circumstances of the disappearance with more frankness +than delicacy." +</p> +<p> +"Ah," said Thorndyke, "that is a pity. If the case +comes into Court, there is bound to be a good deal of +unpleasant discussion and still more unpleasant comment +in the newspapers. But if the parties themselves +begin to express suspicions of one another there is no +telling where the matter will end." +</p> +<p> +"No, by Jove!" said Jervis. "If they begin flinging +accusations of murder about, the fat will be in the fire +with a vengeance. That way lies the Old Bailey." +</p> +<p> +"We must try to prevent them from making an +unnecessary scandal," said Thorndyke. "It may be +that an exposure will be unavoidable, and that must +be ascertained in advance. But to return to your +question, Berkeley, as to what is to be done. Hurst +will probably make some move pretty soon. Do you +know if Jellicoe will act with him?" +</p> +<p> +"No, he won't. He declines to take any steps without +Godfrey's assent—at least, that is what he says +at present. His attitude is one of correct neutrality." +</p> +<p> +"That is satisfactory, so far," said Thorndyke, +"though he may alter his tone when the case comes +into Court. From what you said just now I gathered +that Jellicoe would prefer to have the will administered +and be quit of the whole business; which is natural +enough, especially as he benefits under the will to the +extent of two thousand pounds and a valuable collection. +Consequently, we may fairly assume that, even +if he maintains an apparent neutrality, his influence +will be exerted in favour of Hurst rather than of Bellingham; +from which it follows that Bellingham ought +certainly to be properly advised, and, when the case +goes into Court, properly represented." +</p> +<p> +"He can't afford either the one or the other," said +I. "He's as poor as an insolvent church mouse and +as proud as the devil. He wouldn't accept professional +aid that he couldn't pay for." +</p> +<p> +"H'm," grunted Thorndyke, "that's awkward. But +we can't allow the case to go 'by default,' so to speak—to +fail for the mere lack of technical assistance. Besides, +it is one of the most interesting cases that I have +ever met with, and I am not going to see it bungled. +He couldn't object to a little general advice in a +friendly, informal way—<i>amicus curiae</i>, as old Brodribb +is so fond of saying; and there is nothing to prevent us +from pushing forward the preliminary inquiries." +</p> +<p> +"Of what nature would they be?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, to begin with, we have to satisfy ourselves +that the conditions of clause two have not been complied +with: that John Bellingham has not been buried +within the parish boundaries mentioned. Of course he +has not, but we must not take anything for granted. +Then we have to satisfy ourselves that he is not still +alive and accessible. It is perfectly possible that he is, +after all, and it is our business to trace him, if he is +still in the land of the living. Jervis and I can carry out +these investigations without saying anything to Bellingham; +my learned brother will look through the register +of burials—not forgetting the cremations—in the metropolitan +area, and I will take the other matter in hand." +</p> +<p> +"You really think that John Bellingham may still +be alive?" said I. +</p> +<p> +"Since his body has not been found, it is obviously +a possibility. I think it in the highest degree improbable, +but the improbable has to be investigated +before it can be excluded." +</p> +<p> +"It sounds like a rather hopeless quest," I remarked. +"How do you propose to begin?" +</p> +<p> +"I think of beginning at the British Museum. The +people there may be able to throw some light on his +movements. I know that there are some important +excavations in progress at Heliopolis—in fact, the +Director of the Egyptian Department is out there at +the present moment; and Doctor Norbury, who is +taking his place temporarily, is an old friend of John +Bellingham's. I shall call on him and try to discover +if there is anything that might have induced Bellingham +suddenly to go abroad—to Heliopolis, for instance. +Also, he may be able to tell me what it was that took +the missing man to Paris on that last, rather mysterious +journey. That might turn out to be an important +clue. And meanwhile, Berkeley, you must endeavour +tactfully to reconcile your friend to the idea of letting +us give an eye to the case. Make it clear to him that +I am doing this entirely for the enlargement of my own +knowledge." +</p> +<p> +"But won't you have to be instructed by a solicitor?" +I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course, nominally; but only as a matter +of etiquette. We shall do all the actual work. Why +do you ask?" +</p> +<p> +"I was thinking of the solicitor's costs, and I was +going to mention that I have a little money of my +own—" +</p> +<p> +"Then keep it, my dear fellow. You'll want it when +you go into practice. There will be no difficulty about +the solicitor; I shall ask one of my friends to act +nominally as a personal favour to me—Marchmont +would take the case for us, Jervis, I am sure." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Jervis. "Or old Brodribb, if we put it +to him <i>amicus curiae</i>." +</p> +<p> +"It is excessively kind of both of you to take this +benevolent interest in the case of my friends," I said; +"and it is to be hoped that they won't be foolishly +proud and stiff-necked about it. It's rather the way +with poor gentlefolk." +</p> +<p> +"I'll tell you what!" exclaimed Jervis. "I have a +most brilliant idea. You shall give us a little supper +at your rooms and invite the Bellinghams to meet us. +Then you and I will attack the old gentleman, and +Thorndyke shall exercise his persuasive powers on the +lady. These chronic and incurable old bachelors, you +know, are quite irresistible." +</p> +<p> +"You observe that my respected junior condemns +me to lifelong celibacy," Thorndyke remarked. "But," +he added, "his suggestion is quite a good one. Of +course, we mustn't put any sort of pressure on Bellingham +to employ us—for that is what it amounts to, even +if we accept no payment—but a friendly talk over the +supper-table would enable us to put the matter delicately +and yet convincingly." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said I, "I see that, and I like the idea immensely. +But it won't be possible for several days, +because I've got a job that takes up all my spare time—and +that I ought to be at work on now," I added, +with a sudden qualm at the way in which I had forgotten +the passage of time in the interest of Thorndyke's +analysis. +</p> +<p> +My two friends looked at me inquiringly, and I felt +it necessary to explain about the injured hand and the +Tell el Amarna tablets; which I accordingly did, rather +shyly and with a nervous eye upon Jervis. The slow +grin, however, for which I was watching, never came; +on the contrary, he not only heard me through quite +gravely, but when I had finished said with some warmth, +and using my old hospital pet name: +</p> +<p> +"I'll say one thing for you, Polly; you're a good +chum, and you always were. I hope your Nevill's +Court friends appreciate the fact." +</p> +<p> +"They are far more appreciative than the occasion +warrants," I answered. "But to return to this supper +question: how will this day week suit you?" +</p> +<p> +"It will suit me," Thorndyke answered, with a glance +at his junior. +</p> +<p> +"And me too," said the latter; "so, if it will do +for the Bellinghams, we will consider it settled; but +if they can't come you must fix another night." +</p> +<p> +"Very well," I said, rising and knocking out my +pipe, "I will issue the invitation to-morrow. And +now I must be off to have another slog at those notes." +</p> +<p> +As I walked homewards I speculated cheerfully on +the prospect of entertaining my friends under my own +(or rather Barnard's) roof, if they could be lured out +of their eremitical retirement. The idea had, in fact, +occurred to me already, but I had been deterred by +the peculiarities of Barnard's housekeeper. For Mrs. +Gummer was one of those housewives who make up +for an archaic simplicity of production by preparations +on the most portentous and alarming scale. But this +time I would not be deterred. If only the guests could +be enticed into my humble lair, it would be easy to +furnish the raw materials of the feast from outside; +and the consideration of ways and means occupied me +pleasantly until I found myself once more at my writing-table, +confronted by my voluminous notes on the incident +of the North Syrian War. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH8"><!-- CH8 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER VIII +</h2> + +<h3> +A MUSEUM IDYLL +</h3> +<p> +Whether it was that practice revived a forgotten +skill on my part, or that Miss Bellingham had over-estimated +the amount of work to be done, I am unable +to say. But whichever may have been the explanation, +the fact is that the fourth afternoon saw our task +so nearly completed that I was fain to plead that a +small remainder might be left over to form an excuse +for yet one more visit to the reading-room. +</p> +<p> +Short, however, as had been the period of our +collaboration, it had been long enough to produce a +great change in our relations to one another. For there +is no friendship so intimate and satisfying as that engendered +by community of work, and none—between +man and woman, at any rate—so frank and wholesome. +</p> +<p> +Every day I had arrived to find a pile of books with +the places duly marked and the blue covered quarto +note-books in readiness. Every day we had worked +steadily at the allotted task, had then handed in the +books and gone forth together to enjoy a most companionable +tea in the milk-shop; thereafter to walk +home by way of Queen Square, talking over the day's +work and discussing the state of the world in the far-off +days when Ahkhenaten was king and the Tell el Amarna +tablets were a-writing. +</p> +<p> +It had been a pleasant time, so pleasant, that as I +handed in the books for the last time, I sighed to think +that it was over; that not only was the task finished, +but that the recovery of my fair patient's hand, from +which I had that morning removed the splint, had put +an end to the need of my help. +</p> +<p> +"What shall we do?" I asked, as we came out into +the central hall; "it is too early for tea. Shall we go +and look at some of the galleries?" +</p> +<p> +"Why not?" she answered. "We might look over +some of the things connected with what we have been +doing. For instance, there is a relief of Ahkhenaten +upstairs in the Third Egyptian Room; we might go +and look at that." +</p> +<p> +I fell in eagerly with the suggestion, placing myself +under her experienced guidance, and we started by way +of the Roman Gallery, past the long row of extremely +commonplace and modern-looking Roman Emperors. +</p> +<p> +"I don't know," she said, pausing for a moment +opposite a bust labelled "Trajan" (but obviously a +portrait of Phil May), "how I am ever even to thank +you for all that you have done? to say nothing of +repayment." +</p> +<p> +"There is no need to do either," I replied. "I +have enjoyed working with you, so I have had my +reward. But still," I added, "if you want to do me +a great kindness, you have it in your power." +</p> +<p> +"How?" +</p> +<p> +"In connection with my friend Doctor Thorndyke. +I told you he was an enthusiast. Now he is, +for some reason, most keenly interested in everything +relating to your uncle, and I happen to know that, +if any legal proceedings should take place, he would +very much like to keep a friendly eye on the case." +</p> +<p> +"And what do you want me to do?" +</p> +<p> +"I want you, if an opportunity should occur for +him to give your father advice or help of any kind, +to use your influence with your father in favour of, +rather than in opposition to, his accepting it—always +assuming that you have no real feeling against his +doing so." +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham looked at me thoughtfully for a +few moments, and then laughed softly. +</p> +<p> +"So the great kindness that I am to do you is to +let you do me a further kindness through your friend!" +</p> +<p> +"No," I protested; "that is where you are quite +mistaken. It isn't benevolence on Doctor Thorndyke's +part; it is professional enthusiasm." +</p> +<p> +She smiled sceptically. +</p> +<p> +"You don't believe in it," I said; "but consider +other cases. Why does a surgeon get out of bed on +a winter's night to do an emergency operation at a +hospital? He doesn't get paid for it. Do you think +it is altruism?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course. Isn't it?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly not. He does it because it is his job, +because it is his business to fight with disease—and +win." +</p> +<p> +"I don't see much difference," she said. "It is work +done for love instead of for payment. However, I +will do what you ask if the opportunity arises; but +I shan't suppose that I am repaying your kindness +to me." +</p> +<p> +"I don't mind, so long as you do it," I said, and we +walked on for some time in silence. +</p> +<p> +"Isn't it odd," she said presently, "how our talk +always seems to come back to my uncle? Oh, and +that reminds me that the things he gave to the Museum +are in the same room as the Ahkhenaten relief. Would +you like to see them?" +</p> +<p> +"Of course I should." +</p> +<p> +"Then we will go and look at them first." She +paused, and then, rather shyly and with a rising colour, +she continued: "And I think I should like to introduce +you to a very dear friend of mine—with your permission, +of course." +</p> +<p> +This last addition she made hastily, seeing, I suppose, +that I looked rather glum at the suggestion. Inwardly +I consigned her friend to the devil, especially if +of the masculine gender; outwardly I expressed my +felicity at making the acquaintance of any person +whom she should honour with her friendship. Whereat, +to my discomfiture, she laughed enigmatically; a very +soft laugh, low-pitched and musical, like the cooing of +a glorified pigeon. +</p> +<p> +I strolled on by her side, speculating a little anxiously +on the coming introduction. Was I being conducted +to the lair of one of the savants attached to the establishment? +and would he add a superfluous third +to our little party of two, so complete and companionable, +<i>solus cum sola</i>, in this populated wilderness? +Above all, would he turn out to be a comely young +man, and bring my aerial castles tumbling about my +ears? The shy look and the blush with which she had +suggested the introduction were ominous indications, +upon which I mused gloomily as we ascended the stairs +and passed through the wide doorway. I glanced +apprehensively at my companion, and met a quiet, +inscrutable smile; and at that moment she halted outside +a wall-case and faced me. +</p> +<p> +"This is my friend," she said. "Let me present +you to Artemidorus, late of the Fayyum. Oh, don't +smile!" she pleaded. "I am quite serious. Have you +never heard of pious Catholics who cherish a devotion +to some long-departed saint? That is my feeling towards +Artemidorus, and if you only knew what comfort +he has shed into the heart of a lonely woman; what +a quiet, unobtrusive friend he has been to me in my +solitary, friendless days, always ready with a kindly +greeting on his gentle, thoughtful face, you would like +him for that alone. And I want you to like him and +to share our silent friendship. Am I very silly, very +sentimental?" +</p> +<p> +A wave of relief had swept over me, and the mercury +of my emotional thermometer, which had shrunk almost +into the bulb, leaped up to summer heat. How charming +it was of her and how sweetly intimate, to wish +to share this mystical friendship with me! And what +a pretty conceit it was, too, and how like this strange, +inscrutable maiden, to come here and hold silent converse +with this long-departed Greek. And the pathos +of it all touched me deeply amidst the joy of this newborn +intimacy. +</p> +<p> +"Are you scornful?" she asked, with a shade of +disappointment, as I made no reply. +</p> +<p> +"No, indeed I am not," I answered earnestly. "I +want to make you aware of my sympathy and my +appreciation without offending you by seeming to exaggerate, +and I don't know how to express it." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, never mind about the expression, so long as +you feel it. I thought you would understand," and +she gave me a smile that made me tingle to my finger-tips. +</p> +<p> +We stood awhile gazing in silence at the mummy—for +such, indeed, was her friend Artemidorus. But not +an ordinary mummy. Egyptian in form, it was entirely +Greek in feeling; and brightly coloured as it +was, in accordance with the racial love of colour, the +tasteful refinement with which the decoration of the +case was treated made those around look garish and +barbaric. But the most striking feature was a charming +panel portrait which occupied the place of the +usual mask. This painting was a revelation to me. +Except that it was executed in tempera instead of +oil, it differed in no respect from modern work. There +was nothing archaic or even ancient about it. With +its freedom of handling and its correct rendering of +light and shade, it might have been painted yesterday; +indeed, enclosed in an ordinary gilt frame, it might +have passed without remark in an exhibition of modern +portraits. +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham observed my admiration and smiled +approvingly. +</p> +<p> +"It is a charming little portrait, isn't it?" she said; +"and such a sweet face, too; so thoughtful and human +with just a shade of melancholy. But the whole thing +is full of charm. I fell in love with it the first time +I saw it. And it is so Greek!" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, it is, in spite of the Egyptian gods and +symbols." +</p> +<p> +"Rather because of them, I think," said she. "There +we have the typical Greek attitude, the genial, cultivated +eclecticism that appreciated the fitness of even +the most alien forms of art. There is Anubis standing +beside the bier; there are Isis and Nephthys, and there +below, Horus and Tahuti. But we can't suppose that +Artemidorus worshipped or believed in those gods. +They are there because they are splendid decoration +and perfectly appropriate in character. The real feeling +of those who loved the dead man breaks out in +the inscription." She pointed to a band below the +pectoral, where, in gilt capital letters, was written the +two words, "ΑΡΤΕΜΙΔΩΡΕ +ΕΥΨΥΧΙ." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I said, "it is very dignified and very human." +</p> +<p> +"And so sincere and full of real emotion," she added. +"I find it unspeakably touching. 'O Artemidorus, +farewell!' There is the real note of human grief, the +sorrow of eternal parting. How much finer it is than +the vulgar boastfulness of the Semitic epitaphs, or +our own miserable, insincere make-believe of the 'Not +lost but gone before' type. He was gone from them +for ever; they would look on his face and hear his +voice no more; they realised that this was their last +farewell. Oh, there is a world of love and sorrow in +those two simple words!" +</p> +<p> +For some time neither of us spoke. The glamour +of this touching memorial of a long-buried grief had +stolen over me, and I was content to stand silent by +my beloved companion and revive, with a certain pensive +pleasure, the ghosts of human emotions over which +so many centuries had rolled. Presently she turned +to me with a frank smile. "You have been weighed +in the balance of friendship," she said, "and not found +wanting. You have the gift of sympathy, even with +a woman's sentimental fancies." +</p> +<p> +I suspected that a good many men would have developed +this precious quality under the circumstances, +but I refrained from saying so. There is no use in +crying down one's own wares. I was glad enough to +have earned her good opinion so easily, and when she +at length turned away from the case and passed +through into the adjoining room, it was a very complacent +young man who bore her company. +</p> +<p> +"Here is Ahkhenaten—or Khu-en-aten, as the +authorities here render the hieroglyphics." She indicated +a fragment of a coloured relief labelled: +"Portion of a painted stone tablet with a portrait +figure of Amen-hetep IV," and we stopped to look at +the frail, effeminate figure of the great king, with his +large cranium, his queer, pointed chin and the Aten +rays stretching out their weird hands as if caressing +him. +</p> +<p> +"We mustn't stay here if you want to see my uncle's +gift, because this room closes at four to-day." With +this admonition she moved on to the other end of the +room, where she halted before a large floor-case containing +a mummy and a large number of other objects. +A black label with white lettering set forth the various +contents with a brief explanation as follows: +</p> +<p> +"Mummy of Sebek-hotep, a scribe of the twenty-second +dynasty, together with the objects found in +the tomb. These include the four Canopic jars, in +which the internal organs were deposited, the Ushabti +figures, tomb provisions and various articles that had +belonged to the deceased; his favourite chair, his head-rest, +his ink-palette, inscribed with his name and the +name of the king, Osorkon I, in whose reign he lived, +and other smaller articles. Presented by John Bellingham, Esq." +</p> +<p> +"They have put all the objects together in one case," +Miss Bellingham explained, "to show the contents of +an ordinary tomb of the better class. You see that the +dead man was provided with all his ordinary comforts: +provisions, furniture, the ink-palette that he had been +accustomed to use in writing on papyri, and a staff +of servants to wait on him." +</p> +<p> +"Where are the servants?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"The little Ushabti figures," she answered; "they +were the attendants of the dead, you know, his servants +in the under-world. It was a quaint idea, wasn't it? +But it was all very complete and consistent, and quite +reasonable, too, if once one accepts the belief in the +persistence of the individual apart from the body." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I agreed, "and that is the only fair way to +judge a religious system, by taking the main beliefs +for granted. But what a business it must have been, +bringing all these things from Egypt to London." +</p> +<p> +"It was worth the trouble, though, for it is a fine +and instructive collection. And the work is all very +good of its kind. You notice that the Ushabti figures +and the heads that form the stoppers of the Canopic +jars are quite finely modelled. The mummy itself, too, +is rather handsome, though that coat of bitumen on +the back doesn't improve it. But Sebek-hotep must +have been a fine-looking man." +</p> +<p> +"The mask on the case is a portrait, I suppose?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; in fact, it is rather more. To some extent +it is the actual face of the man himself. This mummy +is enclosed in what is called a cartonnage, that is a +case moulded on the figure. The cartonnage, was formed +of a number of layers of linen or papyrus united by +glue or cement, and when the case had been fitted +to the mummy it was moulded to the body, so that the +general form of the features and limbs was often +apparent. After the cement was dry the case was +covered with a thin layer of stucco and the face +modelled more completely, and then the decorations +and inscriptions were painted on. So that, you see, +in a cartonnage, the body was sealed up like a nut in +its shell, unlike the more ancient forms in which the +mummy was merely rolled up and enclosed in a wooden +coffin." +</p> +<p> +At this moment there smote upon our ears a politely +protesting voice announcing in sing-song tones that +it was closing time; and simultaneously a desire for +tea suggested the hospitable milk-shop. With leisurely +dignity that ignored the official who shepherded us +along the galleries, we made our way to the entrance, +still immersed in conversation on matters sepulchral. +</p> +<p> +It was rather earlier than our usual hour for leaving +the Museum and, moreover, it was our last day—for +the present. Wherefore we lingered over our tea to +an extent that caused the milk-shop lady to view us +with some disfavour, and when at length we started +homeward, we took so many short cuts that six o'clock +found us no nearer our destination than Lincoln's Inn +Fields; whither we had journeyed by a slightly indirect +route that traversed (among other places) Russell +Square, Red Lion Square, with the quaint passage of +the same name, Bedford Row, Jockey's Fields, Hand +Court, and Great Turnstile. +</p> +<p> +It was in the latter thoroughfare that our attention +was attracted by a flaming poster outside a newsvendor's +bearing the startling inscription: +</p> +<p><b> +"MORE MEMENTOES OF MURDERED MAN." +</b></p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham glanced at the poster and shuddered. +</p> +<p> +"Horrible! Isn't it?" she said. "Have you read +about them?" +</p> +<p> +"I haven't been noticing the papers the last few, +days," I replied. +</p> +<p> +"No, of course you haven't. You've been slaving +at those wretched notes. We don't very often see the +papers, at least we don't take them in, but Miss Oman +has kept us supplied during the last day or two. She +is a perfect little ghoul; she delights in horrors of +every kind, and the more horrible the better." +</p> +<p> +"But," I asked, "what is it that they have found?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, they are the remains of some poor creature +who seems to have been murdered and cut in pieces. +It is dreadful. It made me shudder to read of it, for +I couldn't help thinking of poor Uncle John, and, as +for my father, he was really quite upset." +</p> +<p> +"Are these the bones that were found in a watercress-bed +at Sidcup?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. But they have found several more. The +police have been most energetic. They seem to have +been making a systematic search, and the result has +been that they have discovered several portions of the +body, scattered about in very widely separated places—Sidcup, +Lee, St. Mary Cray; and yesterday it was +reported that an arm had been found in one of the +ponds called 'the Cuckoo Pits,' close to our old home." +</p> +<p> +"What! in Essex?" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, in Epping Forest, quite near Woodford. +Isn't it dreadful to think of it? They were probably +hidden when we were living there. I think it was that +that horrified my father so much. When he read it he +was so upset that he gathered up the whole bundle +of newspapers and tossed them out of the window; and +they blew over the wall, and poor Miss Oman had to +rush out and pursue them up the court." +</p> +<p> +"Do you think he suspects that these remains may +be those of your uncle?" +</p> +<p> +"I think so, though he has said nothing to that +effect, and, of course, I have not made any such suggestion +to him. We always preserve the fiction between +ourselves of believing that Uncle John is still +alive." +</p> +<p> +"But you don't think he is, do you?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I am afraid I don't; and I feel pretty sure +that my father doesn't think so either, but he doesn't +like to admit it to me." +</p> +<p> +"Do you happen to remember what bones have been +found?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I don't. I know that an arm was found in +the Cuckoo Pits, and I think a thigh-bone was dredged +up out of a pond near St. Mary Cray. But Miss Oman +will be able to tell you all about it, if you are interested. +She will be delighted to meet a kindred spirit," Miss +Bellingham added, with a smile. +</p> +<p> +"I don't know that I want to claim spiritual kinship +with a ghoul," said I; "especially such a very sharp-tempered +ghoul." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't disparage her, Doctor Berkeley!" Miss +Bellingham pleaded. "She isn't really bad-tempered; +only a little prickly on the surface. I oughtn't to have +called her a ghoul; she is just the sweetest, most +affectionate, most unselfish little angelic human hedgehog +that you could find if you travelled the wide world +through. Do you know that she has been working her +fingers to the bone making an old dress of mine presentable +because she is so anxious that I shall look +nice at your little supper-party." +</p> +<p> +"You are sure to do that, in any case," I said; "but +I withdraw my remark as to her temper unreservedly. +And I really didn't mean it, you know; I have always +liked the little lady." +</p> +<p> +"That's right; and now won't you come in and have +a few minutes' chat with my father? We are quite +early, in spite of the short cuts." +</p> +<p> +I assented readily, and the more so inasmuch as I +wanted a few words with Miss Oman on the subject of +catering and did not want to discuss it before my +friends. Accordingly I went in and gossiped with Mr. +Bellingham, chiefly about the work that we had done +at the Museum, until it was time for me to return to +the surgery. +</p> +<p> +Having taken my leave, I walked down the stairs +with reflective slowness and as much creaking of my +boots as I could manage; with the result, hopefully +anticipated, that as I approached the door of Miss +Oman's room it opened and the lady's head protruded. +</p> +<p> +"I'd change my cobbler if I were you," she said. +</p> +<p> +I thought of the "angelic human hedgehog," and +nearly sniggered in her face. +</p> +<p> +"I am sure you would, Miss Oman, instantly; though, +mind you, the poor fellow can't help his looks." +</p> +<p> +"You are a very flippant young man," she said +severely. Whereat I grinned, and she regarded me +silently with a baleful glare. Suddenly I remembered +my mission and became serious and sober. +</p> +<p> +"Miss Oman," I said, "I very much want to take +your advice on a matter of some importance—to me, +at least." (That ought to fetch her, I thought.) The +"advice fly"—strangely neglected by Izaak Walton—is +guaranteed to kill in any weather. And it did fetch +her. She rose in a flash and gorged it, cock's feathers, +worsted body and all. +</p> +<p> +"What is it about?" she asked eagerly. "But don't +stand out there where everybody can hear but me. +Come in and sit down." +</p> +<p> +Now, I didn't want to discuss the matter here, and, +besides, there was not time. I therefore assumed an +air of mystery. +</p> +<p> +"I can't, Miss Oman. I'm due at the surgery now. +But if you should be passing and should have a few +minutes to spare, I should be greatly obliged if you +would look in. I really don't quite know how to act." +</p> +<p> +"No, I expect not. Men very seldom do. But +you're better than most, for you know when you are +in difficulties and have the sense to consult a woman. +But what is it about? Perhaps I might be thinking +it over." +</p> +<p> +"Well, you know," I began evasively, "it's a simple +matter, but I can't very well—no, by Jove!" I added, +looking at my watch, "I must run, or I shall keep the +multitude waiting." And with this I bustled away, +leaving her literally dancing with curiosity. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH9"><!-- CH9 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER IX +</h2> + +<h3> +THE SPHINX OF LINCOLN'S INN +</h3> +<p> +At the age of twenty-six one cannot claim to have +attained to the position of a person of experience. +Nevertheless, the knowledge of human nature accumulated +in that brief period sufficed to make me feel pretty +confident that, at some time during the evening, I should +receive a visit from Miss Oman. And circumstances +justified my confidence; for the clock yet stood at two +minutes to seven when a premonitory tap at the surgery +door heralded her arrival. +</p> +<p> +"I happened to be passing," she explained, and I +forbore to smile at the coincidence, "so I thought I +might as well drop in and hear what you wanted to +ask me about." +</p> +<p> +She seated herself in the patients' chair and, laying +a bundle of newspapers on the table, glared at me +expectantly. +</p> +<p> +"Thank you, Miss Oman," I said. "It is very good +of you to look in on me. I am ashamed to give you +all this trouble about such a trifling matter." +</p> +<p> +She rapped her knuckles impatiently on the table. +</p> +<p> +"Never mind about the trouble," she exclaimed +tartly. "What—is—it—that—you—want—to—<i>ask</i>—me about?" +</p> +<p> +I stated my difficulties in respect of the supper-party, +and, as I proceeded, an expression of disgust +and disappointment spread over her countenance. +"I don't see why you need have been so mysterious +about it," she said glumly. +</p> +<p> +"I didn't mean to be mysterious; I was only anxious +not to make a mess of the affair. It's all very fine to +assume a lofty scorn of the pleasures of the table, but +there is great virtue in a really good feed, especially +when low-living and high-thinking have been the order +of the day." +</p> +<p> +"Coarsely put," said Miss Oman, "but perfectly +true." +</p> +<p> +"Very well. Now, if I leave the management to +Mrs. Gummer, she will probably provide a tepid Irish +stew with flakes of congealed fat on it, and a plastic +suet-pudding or something of that kind, and turn the +house upside-down in getting it ready. So I thought +of having a cold spread and getting the things in from +outside. But I don't want it to look as if I had been +making enormous preparations." +</p> +<p> +"They won't think the things came down from +heaven," said Miss Oman. +</p> +<p> +"No, I suppose they won't. But you know what I +mean. Now, where do you advise me to go for the raw +materials of conviviality?" +</p> +<p> +Miss Oman reflected. "You'd better let me do your +shopping and manage the whole business," was her +final verdict. +</p> +<p> +This was precisely what I had wanted, and I accepted +thankfully, regardless of the feelings of Mrs. Gummer. +I handed her two pounds, and, after some protests at +my extravagance, she bestowed them in her purse; a +process that occupied time, since that receptacle, besides +and time-stained bills, already bulged with a lading of +draper's samples, ends of tape, a card of linen buttons, +another of hooks and eyes, a lump of beeswax, a rat-eaten +stump of lead-pencil, and other trifles that I +have forgotten. As she closed the purse at the imminent +risk of wrenching off its fastenings she looked at +me severely and pursed up her lips. +</p> +<p> +"You're a very plausible young man," she remarked. +</p> +<p> +"What makes you say that?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Philandering about museums," she continued, +"with handsome young ladies on the pretence of work. +Work, indeed! Oh, I heard her telling her father +about it. She thinks you were perfectly enthralled by +the mummies and dried cats and chunks of stone and +all the other trash. She doesn't know what humbugs +men are." +</p> +<p> +"Really, Miss Oman—" I began. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't talk to me!" she snapped. "I can see +it all. You can't impose on <i>me</i>. I can see you staring +into those glass cases, egging her on to talk and listening +open-mouthed and bulging-eyed and sitting at her +feet—now, didn't you?" +</p> +<p> +"I don't know about sitting at her feet," I said, +"though it might easily have come to that with those +infernal slippery floors; but I had a very jolly time, +and I mean to go again if I can. Miss Bellingham is +the cleverest and most accomplished woman I have ever +spoken to." +</p> +<p> +This was a poser for Miss Oman, whose admiration +and loyalty, I knew, were only equalled by my own. +She would have liked to contradict me, but the thing +was impossible. To cover her defeat she snatched up +the bundle of newspapers and began to open them out. +</p> +<p> +"What sort of stuff is 'hibernation'?" she demanded +suddenly. +</p> +<p> +"Hibernation!" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. They found a patch of it on a bone that was +discovered in a pond at St. Mary Cray, and a similar +patch on one that was found at some place in Essex. +Now, I want to know what 'hibernation' is." +</p> +<p> +"You must mean 'eburnation,'" I said, after a +moment's reflection. +</p> +<p> +"The newspapers say 'hibernation,' and I suppose +they know what they are talking about. If you don't +know what it is, don't be ashamed to say so." +</p> +<p> +"Well, then, I don't." +</p> +<p> +"In that case you'd better read the papers and find +out," she said, a little illogically. And then: "Are +you fond of murders? I am, awfully." +</p> +<p> +"What a shocking little ghoul you must be!" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +She stuck out her chin at me. "I'll trouble you," +she said, "to be a little more respectful in your language. +Do you realise that I am old enough to be +your mother?" +</p> +<p> +"Impossible!" I ejaculated. +</p> +<p> +"Fact," said Miss Oman. +</p> +<p> +"Well, anyhow," said I, "age is not the only qualification. +And, besides, you are too late for the billet. +The vacancy's filled." +</p> +<p> +Miss Oman slapped the papers down on the table +and rose abruptly. +</p> +<p> +"You had better read the papers and see if you can +learn a little sense," she said severely as she turned to +go. "Oh, and don't forget the finger!" she added +eagerly. "That is really thrilling." +</p> +<p> +"The finger?" I repeated. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. They found a hand with one finger missing. +The police think it is a highly important clue. I don't +know quite what they mean; but you read the account +and tell me what you think." +</p> +<p> +With this parting injunction she bustled out through +the surgery, and I followed to bid her a ceremonious +adieu on the doorstep. I watched her little figure tripping +with quick, bird-like steps down Fetter Lane, +and was about to turn back into the surgery when my +attention was attracted by the evolutions of an elderly +gentleman on the opposite side of the street. He was +a somewhat peculiar-looking man, tall, gaunt, and bony, +and the way in which he carried his head suggested +to the medical mind a pronounced degree of near sight +and a pair of "deep" spectacle glasses. Suddenly +he espied me and crossed the road with his chin thrust +forward and a pair of keen blue eyes directed at me +through the centres of his spectacles. +</p> +<p> +"I wonder if you can and will help me," said he, +with a courteous salute. "I wish to call on an acquaintance, +and I have forgotten his address. It is in +some court, but the name of that court has escaped +me for the moment. My friend's name is Bellingham. +I suppose you don't chance to know it? Doctors know +a great many people, as a rule." +</p> +<p> +"Do you mean Mr. Godfrey Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"Ah! Then you do know him. I have not consulted +the oracle in vain. He is a patient of yours, no +doubt?" +</p> +<p> +"A patient and a personal friend. His address is +Forty-nine Nevill's Court." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you, thank you. Oh, and as you are a +friend, perhaps you can inform me as to the customs +of the household. I am not expected, and I do not +wish to make an untimely visit. What are Mr. Bellingham's +habits as to his evening meal? Would this be +a convenient time to call?" +</p> +<p> +"I generally make my evening visits a little later +than this—say about half-past eight; they have +finished their meal by then." +</p> +<p> +"Ah! half-past eight, then? Then I suppose I had +better take a walk until that time. I don't want to +disturb them." +</p> +<p> +"Would you care to come in and smoke a cigar until +it is time to make your call? If you would, I could +walk over with you and show you the house." +</p> +<p> +"That is very kind of you," said my new acquaintance, +with an inquisitive glance at me through his spectacles. +"I think I should like to sit down. It's a dull +affair, mooning about the streets, and there isn't time +to go back to my chambers—in Lincoln's Inn." +</p> +<p> +"I wonder," said I, as I ushered him into the room +lately vacated by Miss Oman, "if you happen to be +Mr. Jellicoe?" +</p> +<p> +He turned his spectacles full on me with a keen, +suspicious glance. "What makes you think I am Mr. +Jellicoe?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, only that you live in Lincoln's Inn." +</p> +<p> +"Ha! I see. I live in Lincoln's Inn; Mr. Jellicoe +lives in Lincoln's Inn; therefore I am Mr. Jellicoe. +Ha! ha! Bad logic, but a correct conclusion. Yes, +I am Mr. Jellicoe. What do you know about +me?" +</p> +<p> +"Mighty little, excepting that you were the late +John Bellingham's man of business." +</p> +<p> +"The '<i>late</i> John Bellingham,' hey! How do you +know he is the late John Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"As a matter of fact, I don't; only I rather understood +that that was your own belief." +</p> +<p> +"You understood! Now, from whom did you +'understand' that? From Godfrey Bellingham? +H'm! And how did he know what I believe? I never +told him. It is a very unsafe thing, my dear sir, to +expound another man's beliefs." +</p> +<p> +"Then you think that John Bellingham is alive?" +</p> +<p> +"Do I? Who said so? I did not, you know." +</p> +<p> +"But he must be either dead or alive." +</p> +<p> +"There," said Mr. Jellicoe, "I am entirely with you. +You have stated an undeniable truth." +</p> +<p> +"It is not a very illuminating one, however," I replied, +laughing. +</p> +<p> +"Undeniable truths often are not," he retorted. +"They are apt to be extremely general. In fact, I +would affirm that the certainty of the truth of a +given proposition is directly proportional to its +generality." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose that is so," said I. +</p> +<p> +"Undoubtedly. Take an instance from your own +profession. Given a million normal human beings +under twenty, and you can say with certainty that a +majority of them will die before reaching a certain +age, that they will die in certain circumstances and of +certain diseases. Then take a single unit from that +million, and what can you predict concerning him? +Nothing. He may die to-morrow; he may live to a +couple of hundred. He may die of a cold in the head +or a cut finger, or from falling off the cross of St. +Paul's. In a particular case you can predict nothing." +</p> +<p> +"That is perfectly true," said I. And then, realising +that I had been led away from the topic of John Bellingham, I +ventured to return to it. +</p> +<p> +"That was a very mysterious affair—the disappearance +of John Bellingham, I mean." +</p> +<p> +"Why mysterious?" asked Mr. Jellicoe. "Men disappear +from time to time, and when they reappear, the +explanations that they give (when they give any) seem +to be more or less adequate." +</p> +<p> +"But the circumstances were surely rather mysterious." +</p> +<p> +"What circumstances?" asked Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"I mean the way in which he vanished from Mr. +Hurst's house." +</p> +<p> +"In what way did he vanish from it?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, of course, I don't know." +</p> +<p> +"Precisely. Neither do I. Therefore I can't say +whether that way was a mysterious one or not." +</p> +<p> +"It is not even certain that he did leave it," I remarked, +rather recklessly. +</p> +<p> +"Exactly," said Mr. Jellicoe. "And if he did not, +he is there still. And if he is there still, he has not +disappeared—in the sense understood. And if he has +not disappeared, there is no mystery." +</p> +<p> +I laughed heartily, but Mr. Jellicoe preserved a +wooden solemnity and continued to examine me through +his spectacles (which I, in my turn, inspected and +estimated at about minus five dioptres). There was +something highly diverting about this grim lawyer, with +his dry contentiousness and almost farcical caution. +His ostentatious reserve encouraged me to ply him with +fresh questions, the more indiscreet the better. +</p> +<p> +"I suppose," said I, "that, under these circumstances, +you would hardly favour Mr. Hurst's proposal +to apply for permission to presume death?" +</p> +<p> +"Under what circumstances?" he inquired. +</p> +<p> +"I was referring to the doubt you have expressed as +to whether John Bellingham is, after all, really dead." +</p> +<p> +"My dear sir," said he, "I fail to see your point. +If it were certain that the man was alive, it would be +impossible to presume that he was dead; and if it were +certain that he was dead, presumption of death would +still be impossible. You do not presume a certainty. +The uncertainty is of the essence of the transaction." +</p> +<p> +"But," I persisted, "if you really believe that he +may be alive, I should hardly have thought that you +would take the responsibility of presuming his death +and dispersing his property." +</p> +<p> +"I don't," said Mr. Jellicoe. "I take no responsibility. +I act in accordance with the decision of the +Court and have no choice in the matter." +</p> +<p> +"But the Court may decide that he is dead and he +may nevertheless be alive." +</p> +<p> +"Not at all. If the Court decides that he is presumably +dead, then he is presumably dead. As a mere +irrelevant, physical circumstance he may, it is true, be +alive. But legally speaking, and for testamentary purposes, +he is dead. You fail to perceive the distinction, +no doubt?" +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid I do," I admitted. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; members of your profession usually do. That +is what makes them such bad witnesses in a court of +law. The scientific outlook is radically different from +the legal. The man of science relies on his own knowledge +and observation and judgment, and disregards +testimony. A man comes to you and tells you he is +blind in one eye. Do you accept his statement? Not +in the least. You proceed to test his eyesight with +some infernal apparatus of coloured glasses, and you +find that he can see perfectly well with both eyes. +Then you decide that he is not blind in one eye; that +is to say, you reject his testimony in favour of facts +of your own ascertaining." +</p> +<p> +"But surely that is the rational method of coming +to a conclusion?" +</p> +<p> +"In science, no doubt. Not in law. A court of law +must decide according to the evidence which is before +it; and that evidence is of the nature of sworn testimony. +If a witness is prepared to swear that black is +white, and no evidence to the contrary is offered, the +evidence before the Court is that black is white, and +the Court must decide accordingly. The judge and the +jury may think otherwise—they may even have private +knowledge to the contrary—but they have to decide +according to the evidence." +</p> +<p> +"Do you mean to say that a judge would be justified +in giving a decision which he knew privately to be contrary +to the facts? Or that he might sentence a man +whom he knew to be innocent?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly. It has been done. There is a case of a +judge who sentenced a man to death and allowed the +execution to take place, notwithstanding that he—the +judge—had actually seen the murder committed by +another man. But that was carrying correctness of +procedure to the verge of pedantry." +</p> +<p> +"It was, with a vengeance," I agreed. "But to +return to the case of John Bellingham. Supposing that +after the Court has decided that he is dead he should +turn up alive? What then?" +</p> +<p> +"Ah! It would then be his turn to make an application, +and the Court, having fresh evidence laid before +it, would probably decide that he was alive." +</p> +<p> +"And meantime his property would have been dispersed?" +</p> +<p> +"Probably. But you will observe that the presumption +of death would have arisen out of his own +proceedings. If a man acts in such a way as to create +a belief that he is dead, he must put up with the consequences." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that is reasonable enough," said I. And then, +after a pause, I asked: "Is there any immediate likelihood +of proceedings of the kind being commenced?" +</p> +<p> +"I understood from what you said just now that +Mr. Hurst was contemplating some action of the kind. +No doubt you had your information from a reliable +quarter." This answer Mr. Jellicoe delivered without +moving a muscle, regarding me with the fixity of a +spectacled figure-head. +</p> +<p> +I smiled feebly. The operation of pumping Mr. +Jellicoe was rather like the sport of boxing with a +porcupine, being chiefly remarkable as a demonstration +of the power of passive resistance. I determined, however, +to make one more effort, rather, I think, for the +pleasure of witnessing his defensive manoeuvres than +with the expectation of getting anything out of him. +I accordingly "opened out" on the subject of the +"remains." +</p> +<p> +"Have you been following these remarkable discoveries +of human bones that have been appearing in +the papers?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +He looked at me stonily for some moments, and then +replied: +</p> +<p> +"Human bones are rather more within your province +than mine, but, now that you mention it, I think I +recall having read of some such discoveries. They were +disconnected bones, I believe?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; evidently parts of a dismembered body." +</p> +<p> +"So I should suppose. No, I have not followed the +accounts. As we get on in life our interests tend to +settle into grooves, and my groove is chiefly connected +with conveyancing. These discoveries would be of +more interest to a criminal lawyer." +</p> +<p> +"I thought that you might, perhaps, have connected +them with the disappearance of your client." +</p> +<p> +"Why should I? What could be the nature of the +connection?" +</p> +<p> +"Well," I said, "these are the bones of a +man—" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; and my client was a man with bones. That +is a connection, certainly, though not a very specific +or distinctive one. But perhaps you had something +more particular in your mind." +</p> +<p> +"I had," I replied. "The fact that some of the +bones were actually found on land belonging to your +client seemed to me rather significant." +</p> +<p> +"Did it, indeed?" said Mr. Jellicoe. He reflected +for a few moments, gazing steadily at me the while, +and then continued: "In that I am unable to follow +you. It would have seemed to me that the finding of +human remains upon a certain piece of land might conceivably +throw a <i>prima facie</i> suspicion upon the owner +or occupant of that land as being the person who deposited +them. But the case that you suggest is the +one case in which this would be impossible. A man +cannot deposit his own dismembered remains." +</p> +<p> +"No, of course not. I was not suggesting that he +deposited them himself, but merely that the fact of +their being deposited on his land, in a way, connected +these remains with him." +</p> +<p> +"Again," said Mr. Jellicoe, "I fail to follow you, +unless you are suggesting that it is customary for +murderers who mutilate bodies to be punctilious in depositing +the dismembered remains upon land belonging +to their victims. In which case I am sceptical as to +your facts. I am not aware of the existence of any +such custom. Moreover, it appears that only a portion +of the body was deposited on Mr. Bellingham's land, +the remaining portions having been scattered broadcast +over a wide area. How does that agree with your +suggestion?" +</p> +<p> +"It doesn't, of course," I admitted. "But there is +another fact that I think you will admit to be more +significant. The first remains that were discovered were +found at Sidcup. Now, Sidcup is close to Eltham; and +Eltham is the place where Mr. Bellingham was last seen +alive." +</p> +<p> +"And what is the significance of this? Why do you +connect the remains with one locality rather than the +various other localities in which other portions of the +body have been found?" +</p> +<p> +"Well," I replied, rather gravelled by this very +pertinent question, "the appearances seem to suggest +that the person who deposited these remains started +from the neighbourhood of Eltham, where the missing +man was last seen." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Jellicoe shook his head. "You appear," said +he, "to be confusing the order of deposition with the +order of discovery. What evidence is there that the +remains found at Sidcup were deposited before those +found elsewhere?" +</p> +<p> +"I don't know that there is any," I admitted. +</p> +<p> +"Then," said he, "I don't see how you support +your suggestion that the person started from the +neighbourhood of Eltham." +</p> +<p> +On consideration, I had to admit that I had nothing +to offer in support of my theory; and having thus shot +my last arrow in this very unequal contest, I thought +it time to change the subject. +</p> +<p> +"I called in at the British Museum the other day," +said I, "and had a look at Mr. Bellingham's last gift +to the nation. The things are very well shown in that +central case." +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I was very pleased with the position they +have given to the exhibit, and so would my poor old +friend have been. I wished, as I looked at the case, that +he could have seen it. But perhaps he may, after all." +</p> +<p> +"I am sure I hope he will," said I, with more sincerity, +perhaps, than the lawyer gave me credit for. +For the return of John Bellingham would most effectually +have cut the Gordian knot of my friend Godfrey's +difficulties. "You are a good deal interested in Egyptology +yourself, aren't you?" I added. +</p> +<p> +"Greatly interested," replied Mr. Jellicoe, with more +animation than I had thought possible in his wooden +face. "It is a fascinating subject, the study of this +venerable civilisation, extending back to the childhood +of the human race, preserved for ever for our instruction +in its own unchanging monuments like a fly in a +block of amber. Everything connected with Egypt is +full of an impressive solemnity. A feeling of permanence, +of stability, defying time and change, pervades +it. The place, the people, and the monuments +alike breathe of eternity." +</p> +<p> +I was mightily surprised at this rhetorical outburst +on the part of this dry and taciturn lawyer. But I +liked him the better for the touch of enthusiasm that +made him human, and determined to keep him astride +of his hobby. +</p> +<p> +"Yet," said I, "the people must have changed in +the course of centuries." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that is so. The people who fought against +Cambyses were not the race that marched into Egypt +five thousand years before—the dynastic people whose +portraits we see on the early monuments. In those fifty +centuries the blood of Hyksos and Syrians and Ethiopians +and Hittites, and who can say how many more +races, must have mingled with that of the old Egyptians. +But still the national life went on without a +break; the old culture leavened the new peoples, and +the immigrant strangers ended by becoming Egyptians. +It is a wonderful phenomenon. Looking back on it +from our own time, it seems more like a geological +period than the life-history of a single nation. Are +you at all interested in the subject?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, decidedly, though I am completely ignorant +of it. The fact is that my interest is of quite recent +growth. It is only of late that I have been sensible of +the glamour of things Egyptian." +</p> +<p> +"Since you made Miss Bellingham's acquaintance, +perhaps?" suggested Mr. Jellicoe, himself as unchanging +in aspect as an Egyptian effigy. +</p> +<p> +I suppose I must have reddened—I certainly resented +the remark—for he continued in the same even +tone: "I made the suggestion because I know that she +takes an intelligent interest in the subject and is, in +fact, quite well informed on it." +</p> +<p> +"Yes; she seems to know a great deal about the +antiquities of Egypt, and I may as well admit that your +surmise was correct. It was she who showed me her +uncle's collection." +</p> +<p> +"So I had supposed," said Mr. Jellicoe. "And a +very instructive collection it is, in a popular sense; +very suitable for exhibition in a public museum, though +there is nothing in it of unusual interest to the expert. +The tomb furniture is excellent of its kind and the +cartonnage case of the mummy is well made and rather +finely decorated." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I thought it quite handsome. But can you +explain to me why, after taking all that trouble to +decorate it, they should have disfigured it with those +great smears of bitumen?" +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" said Mr. Jellicoe, "that is quite an interesting +question. It is not unusual to find mummy-cases +smeared with bitumen; there is a mummy of a priestess +in the next gallery which is completely coated with +bitumen excepting the gilded face. Now, this bitumen +was put on for a purpose—for the purpose of obliterating +the inscriptions and thus concealing the identity of +the deceased from the robbers and desecrators of tombs. +And there is the oddity of this mummy of Sebek-hotep. +Evidently there was an intention of obliterating the +inscriptions. The whole of the back is covered thickly +with bitumen, and so are the feet. Then the workers +seem to have changed their minds and left the inscriptions +and decoration untouched. Why they intended +to cover it, and why, having commenced, they left it +partially covered only, is a mystery. The mummy was +found in its original tomb and quite undisturbed, so far +as tomb-robbers are concerned. Poor Bellingham was +greatly puzzled as to what the explanation could be." +</p> +<p> +"Speaking of bitumen," said I, "reminds me of a +question that has occurred to me. You know that this +substance has been used a good deal by modern painters +and that it has a very dangerous peculiarity; I mean +its tendency to liquefy, without any very obvious reason, +long after it has dried." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I know. Isn't there some story about a +picture of Reynolds' in which bitumen had been used? +A portrait of a lady, I think. The bitumen softened, +and one of the lady's eyes slipped down on to her +cheek; and they had to hang the portrait upside down +and keep it warm until the eye slipped back into its +place. But what was your question?" +</p> +<p> +"I was wondering whether the bitumen used by the +Egyptian artists has ever been known to soften after +this great lapse of time." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I think it has. I have heard of instances in +which the bitumen coatings of mummy cases have softened +under certain circumstances and become quite +'tacky.' But, bless my soul! here am I gossiping +with you and wasting your time, and it is nearly a +quarter to nine!" +</p> +<p> +My guest rose hastily, and I, with many apologies +for having detained him, proceeded to fulfil my promise +to guide him to his destination. As we sallied forth +together the glamour of Egypt faded by degrees, and +when he shook my hand stiffly at the gate of the Bellinghams' +house, all his vivacity and enthusiasm had +vanished, leaving the taciturn lawyer, dry, uncommunicative, +and not a little suspicious. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH10"><!-- CH10 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER X +</h2> + +<h3> +THE NEW ALLIANCE +</h3> +<p> +The "Great Lexicographer"—tutelary deity of my +adopted habitat—has handed down to shuddering posterity +a definition of the act of eating which might +have been framed by a dyspeptic ghoul. "Eat: to +devour with the mouth." It is a shocking view to take +of so genial a function: cynical, indelicate, and finally +unforgivable by reason of its very accuracy. For, +after all, that is what eating amounts to, if one must +needs express it with such crude brutality. But if "the +ingestion of alimentary substances"—to ring a modern +change upon the older formula—is in itself a process +material even unto carnality, it is undeniable that it +forms a highly agreeable accompaniment to more +psychic manifestations. +</p> +<p> +And so, as the lamplight, re-enforced by accessory +candles, falls on the little table in the first-floor room +looking on Fetter Lane—only now the curtains are +drawn—the conversation is not the less friendly and +bright for a running accompaniment executed with +knives and forks, for clink of goblet and jovial gurgle +of wine-flask. On the contrary, to one of us, at least—to +wit, Godfrey Bellingham—the occasion is one of +uncommon festivity, and his boyish enjoyment of the +simple feast makes pathetic suggestions of hard +times, faced uncomplainingly, but keenly felt nevertheless. +</p> +<p> +The talk flitted from topic to topic, mainly concerning +itself with matters artistic, and never for one moment +approaching the critical subject of John Bellingham's +will. From the stepped pyramid of Sakkara +with its encaustic tiles to mediaeval church floors; from +Elizabethan woodwork to Mycaenaean pottery, and +thence to the industrial arts of the Stone Age and +the civilisation of the Aztecs. I began to suspect that +my two legal friends were so carried away by the interest +of the conversation that they had forgotten the +secret purpose of the meeting, for the dessert had been +placed on the table (by Mrs. Gummer with the manner +of a bereaved dependant dispensing funeral bakemeats), +and still no reference had been made to the "case." +But it seemed that Thorndyke was but playing a waiting +game; was only allowing the intimacy to ripen while +he watched for the opportunity. And that opportunity +came, even as Mrs. Gummer vanished spectrally with +a tray of plates and glasses. +</p> +<p> +"So you had a visitor last night, Doctor," said Mr. +Bellingham. "I mean my friend Jellicoe. He told us +he had seen you, and mighty curious he was about you. +I have never known Jellicoe to be so inquisitive before. +What did you think of him?" +</p> +<p> +"A quaint old cock. I found him highly amusing. +We entertained one another for quite a long time with +cross questions and crooked answers; I affecting eager +curiosity, he replying with a defensive attitude of +universal ignorance. It was a most diverting encounter." +</p> +<p> +"He needn't have been so close," Miss Bellingham +remarked, "seeing that all the world will be regaled +with our affairs before long." +</p> +<p> +"They are proposing to take the case into Court, +then?" said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Mr. Bellingham. "Jellicoe came to tell +me that my cousin, Hurst, has instructed his solicitors +to make the application and to invite me to join him. +Actually he came to deliver an ultimatum from Hurst—But, +I mustn't disturb the harmony of this festive gathering +with litigious discords." +</p> +<p> +"Now, why mustn't you?" asked Thorndyke. +"Why is a subject in which we are all keenly interested +to be <i>tabu</i>? You don't mind telling us about it, do +you?" +</p> +<p> +"No, of course not. But what do you think of a +man who buttonholes a doctor at a dinner-party to +retail a list of his ailments?" +</p> +<p> +"It depends on what his ailments are," replied +Thorndyke. "If he is a chronic dyspeptic and wishes +to expound the virtues of Doctor Snaffler's Purple Pills +for Pimply People, he is merely a bore. But if he +chances to suffer from some rare and choice disease, +such as Trypanosomiasis or Acromegaly, the doctor +will be delighted to listen." +</p> +<p> +"Then are we to understand," Miss Bellingham +asked, "that we are rare and choice products, in a +legal sense?" +</p> +<p> +"Undoubtedly," replied Thorndyke. "The case of +John Bellingham is, in many respects, unique. It will +be followed with the deepest interest by the profession +at large, and especially by medical jurists." +</p> +<p> +"How gratifying that should be to us!" said Miss +Bellingham. "We may even attain undying fame in +textbooks and treatises; and yet we are not so very +much puffed up with our importance." +</p> +<p> +"No," said her father; "we could do without the +fame quite well, and so, I think, could Hurst. Did +Berkeley tell you of the proposal that he made?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Thorndyke; "and I gather from what +you say that he has repeated it." +</p> +<p> +"Yes. He sent Jellicoe to give me another chance, +and I was tempted to take it; but my daughter was +strongly against any compromise, and probably she is +right. At any rate, she is more concerned than I am." +</p> +<p> +"What view did Mr. Jellicoe take?" Thorndyke +asked. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, he was very cautious and reserved, but he +didn't disguise his feeling that I should be wise to take +a certainty in lieu of a very problematical fortune. He +would certainly like me to agree, for he naturally +wishes to get the affair settled and pocket his legacy." +</p> +<p> +"And have you definitely refused?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; quite definitely. So Hurst will apply for +permission to presume death and prove the will, and +Jellicoe will support him; he says he has no choice." +</p> +<p> +"And you?" +</p> +<p> +"I suppose I shall oppose the application, though I +don't quite know on what grounds." +</p> +<p> +"Before you take any definite steps," said Thorndyke, +"you ought to give the matter very careful consideration. +I take it that you have very little doubt +that your brother is dead. And if he is dead, any +benefit that you may receive under the will must be +conditional on the previous assumption or proof of +death. But perhaps you have taken advice?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I have not. As our friend the Doctor has +probably told you, my means—or rather, the lack of +them—do not admit of my getting professional advice. +Hence my delicacy about discussing the case with you." +</p> +<p> +"Then do you propose to conduct your case in +person?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; if it is necessary for me to appear in Court, +as I suppose it will be, if I oppose the application." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke reflected for a few moments, and then +said gravely: +</p> +<p> +"You had much better not appear in person to conduct +your case, Mr. Bellingham, for several reasons. +To begin with, Mr. Hurst is sure to be represented by +a capable counsel, and you will find yourself quite unable +to meet the sudden exigencies of a contest in Court. +You will be out-manoeuvred. Then there is the judge +to be considered." +</p> +<p> +"But surely one can rely on the judge dealing fairly +with a man who is unable to afford a solicitor and +counsel?" +</p> +<p> +"Undoubtedly, as a rule, a judge will give an unrepresented +litigant every assistance and consideration. +English judges in general are high-minded men with +a deep sense of their great responsibilities. But you +cannot afford to take any chances. You must consider +the exceptions. A judge has been a counsel, and he +may carry to the bench some of the professional prejudices +of the bar. Indeed, if you consider the absurd +licence permitted to counsel in their treatment of witnesses, +and the hostile attitude adopted by some judges +towards medical and other scientific men who have to +give their evidence, you will see that the judicial mind +is not always quite as judicial as one would wish, +especially when the privileges and immunities of the +profession are concerned. Now, your appearance in +person to conduct your case must, unavoidably, cause +some inconvenience to the Court. Your ignorance of +procedure and legal details must occasion some delay; +and if the judge should happen to be an irritable man +he might resent the inconvenience and delay. I don't +say that that would affect his decision—I don't think +it would—but I am sure that it would be wise to avoid +giving offence to the judge. And, above all, it is most +desirable to be able to detect and reply to any manoeuvres +on the part of the opposing counsel, which you +certainly would not be able to do." +</p> +<p> +"This is excellent advice, Doctor Thorndyke," said +Bellingham, with a grim smile; "but I am afraid I +shall have to take my chance." +</p> +<p> +"Not necessarily," said Thorndyke. "I am going +to make a little proposal, which I will ask you to consider +without prejudice as a mutual accommodation. +You see, your case is one of exceptional interest—it +will become a textbook case, as Miss Bellingham has +prophesied; and, since it lies within my specialty, it +will be necessary for me, in any case, to follow it in +the closest detail. Now, it would be much more satisfactory +to me to study it from within than from without, +to say nothing of the credit which would accrue +to me if I should be able to conduct it to a successful +issue. I am therefore going to ask you to put your case +in my hands and let me see what can be done with it. +I know this is an unusual course for a professional man +to take, but I think it is not improper under the circumstances." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham pondered in silence for a few moments, +and then, after a glance at his daughter, began +rather hesitatingly: "It is exceedingly generous of you, +Doctor Thorndyke—" +</p> +<p> +"Pardon me," interrupted Thorndyke, "it is not. +My motives, as I have explained, are purely egoistic." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham laughed uneasily and again glanced +at his daughter, who, however, pursued her occupation +of peeling a pear with calm deliberation and without +lifting her eyes. Getting no help from her, he asked: +"Do you think that there is any possibility whatever +of a successful issue?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, a remote possibility—very remote, I fear, as +things look at present; but if I thought the case absolutely +hopeless I should advise you to stand aside and +let events take their course." +</p> +<p> +"Supposing the case to come to a favourable termination, +would you allow me to settle your fees in the +ordinary way?" +</p> +<p> +"If the choice lay with me," replied Thorndyke, "I +should say 'yes' with pleasure. But it does not. The +attitude of the profession is very definitely unfavourable +to 'speculative' practice. You may remember +the well-known firm of Dodson and Fogg, who gained +thereby much profit, but little credit. But why discuss +contingencies of this kind? If I bring your case to a +successful issue I shall have done very well for myself. +We shall have benefited one another mutually. Come +now, Miss Bellingham, I appeal to you. We have eaten +salt together, to say nothing of pigeon pie and other +cates. Won't you back me up, and at the same time +do a kindness to Doctor Berkeley?" +</p> +<p> +"Why, is Doctor Berkeley interested in our decision?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly he is, as you will appreciate when I tell +you that he actually tried to bribe me secretly out of +his own pocket." +</p> +<p> +"Did you?" she asked, looking at me with an expression +that rather alarmed me. +</p> +<p> +"Well, not exactly," I replied, mighty hot and uncomfortable, +and wishing Thorndyke at the devil with +his confidences. "I merely mentioned that the—the—solicitor's +costs, you know, and that sort of thing—but +you needn't jump on me, Miss Bellingham; Doctor +Thorndyke did all that was necessary in that way." +</p> +<p> +She continued to look at me thoughtfully as I stammered +out my excuses, and then said: "I wasn't going +to. I was only thinking that poverty has its compensations. +You are all so very good to us; and, for my +part, I should accept Doctor Thorndyke's generous +offer most gratefully, and thank him for making it so +easy for us." +</p> +<p> +"Very well, my dear," said Mr. Bellingham; "we +will enjoy the sweets of poverty, as you say—we have +sampled the other kind of thing pretty freely—and do +ourselves the pleasure of accepting a great kindness, +most delicately offered." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you," said Thorndyke. "You have justified +my faith in you, Miss Bellingham, and in the power +of Doctor Berkeley's salt. I understand that you place +your affairs in my hands?" +</p> +<p> +"Entirely and thankfully," replied Mr. Bellingham. +"Whatever you think best to be done we agree to +beforehand." +</p> +<p> +"Then," said I, "let us drink success to the Cause. +Port, if you please, Miss Bellingham; the vintage is +not recorded, but it is quite wholesome, and a suitable +medium for the sodium chloride of friendship." I filled +her glass, and, when the bottle had made its circuit, we +stood up and solemnly pledged the new alliance. +</p> +<p> +"There is just one thing that I would say before we +dismiss the subject for the present," said Thorndyke. +"It is a good thing to keep one's own counsel. When +you get formal notice from Mr. Hurst's solicitors that +proceedings are being commenced, you may refer them +to Mr. Marchmont of Gray's Inn, who will nominally +act for you. He will actually have nothing to do, but +we must preserve the fiction that I am instructed by a +solicitor. Meanwhile, and until the case goes into +Court, I think it very necessary that neither Mr. +Jellicoe nor anyone else should know that I am to be +connected with it. We must keep the other side in the +dark, if we can." +</p> +<p> +"We will be as secret as the grave," said Mr. Bellingham; +"and, as a matter of fact, it will be quite easy, +since it happens, by a curious coincidence, that I am +already acquainted with Mr. Marchmont. He acted for +Stephen Blackmore, you remember, in that case that +you unravelled so wonderfully. I knew the Blackmores." +</p> +<p> +"Did you?" said Thorndyke. "What a small world +it is! And what a remarkable affair that was! The +intricacies and cross-issues made it quite absorbingly +interesting; and it is noteworthy for me in another respect, +for it was one of the first cases in which I was +associated with Doctor Jervis." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, and a mighty useful associate I was," remarked +Jervis, "though I did pick up one or two facts +by accident. And, by the way, the Blackmore case had +certain points in common with your case, Mr. Bellingham. +There was a disappearance and a disputed will, +and the man who vanished was a scholar and an +antiquarian." +</p> +<p> +"Cases in our specialty are apt to have certain general +resemblances," said Thorndyke; and as he spoke +he directed a keen glance at his junior, the significance +of which I partly understood when he abruptly changed +the subject. +</p> +<p> +"The newspaper reports of your brother's disappearance, +Mr. Bellingham, were remarkably full of detail. +There were even plans of your house and that of Mr. +Hurst. Do you know who supplied the information?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I don't," replied Mr. Bellingham. "I know +that I didn't. Some newspaper men came to me for +information, but I sent them packing. So, I understand, +did Hurst; and as for Jellicoe, you might as +well cross-examine an oyster." +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Thorndyke, "the Press-men have queer +methods of getting 'copy'; but still, someone must +have given them that description of your brother and +those plans. It would be interesting to know who it +was. However, we don't know; and now let us dismiss +these legal topics, with suitable apologies for having +introduced them." +</p> +<p> +"And perhaps," said I, "we may as well adjourn to +what we will call the drawing-room—it is really Barnard's +den—and leave the housekeeper to wrestle with +the debris." +</p> +<p> +We migrated to the cheerfully shabby little apartment, +and, when Mrs. Gummer had served coffee, with +gloomy resignation (as who should say: "If you will +drink this sort of stuff I suppose you must, but don't +blame <i>me</i> for the consequences"), I settled Mr. Bellingham +in Barnard's favourite lop-sided easy chair—the +depressed seat of which suggested its customary use +by an elephant of sedentary habits—and opened the +diminutive piano. +</p> +<p> +"I wonder if Miss Bellingham would give us a little +music?" I said. +</p> +<p> +"I wonder if she could?" was the smiling response. +"Do you know," she continued, "I have not touched +a piano for nearly two years? It will be quite an interesting +experiment—to me; but if it fails, you will +be the sufferers. So you must choose." +</p> +<p> +"My verdict," said Mr. Bellingham, "is <i>fiat experimentum</i>, +though I won't complete the quotation, as +that would seem to disparage Doctor Barnard's piano. +But before you begin, Ruth, there is one rather disagreeable +matter that I want to dispose of, so that I +may not disturb the harmony with it later." +</p> +<p> +He paused, and we all looked at him expectantly. +</p> +<p> +"I suppose, Doctor Thorndyke," he said, "you read +the newspapers?" +</p> +<p> +"I don't," replied Thorndyke. "But I ascertain, +for purely business purposes, what they contain." +</p> +<p> +"Then," said Mr. Bellingham, "you have probably +met with some accounts of the finding of certain human +remains, apparently portions of a mutilated body?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I have seen those reports and filed them for +future reference." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. Well, now, it can hardly be necessary +for me to tell you that those remains—the mutilated +remains of some poor murdered creature, as there can +be no doubt they are—have seemed to have a very +dreadful significance for me. You will understand what +I mean; and I want to ask you if—if they have made +a similar suggestion to you." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke paused before replying, with his eyes bent +thoughtfully on the floor, and we all looked at him +anxiously. +</p> +<p> +"It is very natural," he said at length, "that you +should associate these remains with the mystery of +your brother's disappearance. I should like to say +that you are wrong in doing so, but if I did I should +be uncandid. There are certain facts that do, undoubtedly, +seem to suggest a connection, and, up to +the present, there are no definite facts of a contrary +significance." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham sighed deeply and shifted uncomfortably +in his chair. +</p> +<p> +"It is a horrible affair!" he said huskily; "horrible! +Would you mind, Doctor Thorndyke, telling us just +how the matter stands in your opinion—what the +probabilities are, for and against?" +</p> +<p> +Again Thorndyke reflected awhile, and it seemed to +me that he was not very willing to discuss the subject. +However, the question had been asked pointedly, and +eventually he answered: +</p> +<p> +"At the present stage of the investigation it is not +very easy to state the balance of probabilities. The +matter is still quite speculative. The bones which have +been found hitherto (for we are dealing with a skeleton, +not with a body) have been exclusively those which +are useless for personal identification; which is, in itself, +a rather curious and striking fact. The general character +and dimensions of the bones seem to suggest a +middle-aged man of about your brother's height, and +the date of deposition appears to be in agreement with +the date of his disappearance." +</p> +<p> +"Is it known, then, when they were deposited?" +Mr. Bellingham asked. +</p> +<p> +"In the case of those found at Sidcup it seems possible +to deduce an approximate date. The watercress-bed +was cleaned out about two years ago, so they could +not have been lying there longer than that; and their +condition suggests that they could not have been there +much less than two years, as there is apparently not a +vestige of the soft structures left. Of course, I am +speaking from the newspaper reports only; I have no +direct knowledge of the matter." +</p> +<p> +"Have they found any considerable part of the body +yet? I haven't been reading the papers myself. My +little friend, Miss Oman, brought a great bundle of 'em +for me to read, but I couldn't stand it; I pitched the +whole boiling of 'em out of the window." +</p> +<p> +I thought I detected a slight twinkle in Thorndyke's +eye, but he answered quite gravely: +</p> +<p> +"I think I can give you the particulars from memory, +though I won't guarantee the dates. The original discovery +was made, apparently quite accidentally, at +Sidcup on the fifteenth of July. It consisted of a complete +left arm, minus the third finger and including the +bones of the shoulder—the shoulder-blade and collar-bone. +This discovery seems to have set the local population, +especially the juvenile part of it, searching all +the ponds and streams of the neighbourhood—" +</p> +<p> +"Cannibals!" interjected Mr. Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"With the result that there was dredged up out of +a pond near St. Mary Cray, in Kent, a right thigh-bone. +There is a slight clue to identity in respect of this +bone, since the head of it has a small patch of what is +called 'eburnation'—that is a sort of porcelain-like +polish that occurs on the parts of bones that form a +joint when the natural covering of cartilage is destroyed +by disease. It is produced by the unprotected surface +of one bone grinding against the similarly unprotected +surface of another." +</p> +<p> +"And how," Mr. Bellingham asked, "would that help +the identification?" +</p> +<p> +"It would indicate," replied Thorndyke, "that the +deceased had probably suffered from rheumatoid arthritis—what +is commonly known as rheumatic gout—and he +would probably have limped slightly and complained +of some pain in the right hip." +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid that doesn't help us much," said Mr. +Bellingham; "for, you see, John had a pretty pronounced +limp from another cause, an old injury to his +left ankle; and as to complaining of pain—well, he +was a hardy old fellow and not much given to making +complaints of any kind. But don't let me interrupt +you." +</p> +<p> +"The next discovery," continued Thorndyke, "was +made near Lee, by the police this time. They seem to +have developed sudden activity in the matter, and in +searching the neighbourhood of West Kent they dragged +out of a pond near Lee the bones of a right foot. Now, +if it had been the left instead of the right we might +have had a clue, as I understand that your brother had +fractured his left ankle, and there might have been +some traces of the injury on the foot itself." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Mr. Bellingham, "I suppose there might. +The injury was described as a Pott's fracture." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. Well, now, after this discovery at Lee +it seems that the police set on foot a systematic search +of all the ponds and small pieces of water around London, +and on the twenty-third, they found in the Cuckoo +Pits in Epping Forest, not far from Woodford, the +bones of a right arm (including those of the shoulder, +as before), which seem to be part of the same body." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Mr. Bellingham, "I heard of that. +Quite close to my old house. Horrible! horrible! It +gave me the shudders to think of it—to think that poor +old John may have been waylaid and murdered when +he was actually coming to see me. He may even have +got into the grounds by the back gate, if it was left unfastened, +and been followed in there and murdered. +You remember that a scarab from his watch-chain was +found there? But is it clear that this arm was the +fellow of the arm that was found at Sidcup?" +</p> +<p> +"It seems to agree in character and dimensions," +said Thorndyke, "and the agreement is strongly supported +by a discovery that was made two days later." +</p> +<p> +"What is that?" Mr. Bellingham demanded. +</p> +<p> +"It is the lower half of a trunk which the police +dredged out of a rather deep pond on the skirts of the +forest at Loughton—Staple's Pond, it is called. The +bones found were the pelvis—that is, the two hipbones—and +six vertebrae, or joints of the backbone. +Having discovered these, the police dammed the stream +and pumped the pond dry, but no other bones were +found; which is rather odd, as there should have been +a pair of ribs belonging to the upper vertebra—the +twelfth dorsal vertebra. It suggests some curious questions +as to the method of dismemberment; but I mustn't +go into unpleasant details. The point is that the cavity +of the right hip-joint showed a patch of eburnation +corresponding to that on the head of the right thigh-bone +that was found at St. Mary Cray. So there can +be very little doubt that these bones are all part of +the same body." +</p> +<p> +"I see," grunted Mr. Bellingham; and he added, +after a moment's thought: "Now, the question is, Are +these bones the remains of my brother John? What +do you say, Doctor Thorndyke?" +</p> +<p> +"I say that the question cannot be answered on the +facts at present known to us. It can only be said that +they may be, and that some of the circumstances suggest +that they are. But we can only wait for further +discoveries. At any moment the police may light upon +some portion of the skeleton which will settle the question +definitely one way or the other." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose," said Mr. Bellingham, "I can't be of any +service to you in the matter of identification?" +</p> +<p> +"Indeed you can," said Thorndyke, "and I was +going to ask you to assist me. What I want you to do +is this: Write down a full description of your brother, +including every detail known to you, together with an +account of every illness or injury from which you know +him to have suffered; and also the names and, if possible, +the addresses of any doctors, surgeons, or dentists +who may have attended him at any time. The dentists +are particularly important, as their information would +be invaluable if the skull belonging to these bones +should be discovered." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham shuddered. +</p> +<p> +"It's a shocking idea," he said; "but, of course, +you are quite right. You must have the facts if you +are to form an opinion. I will write out what you want +and send it to you without delay. And now, for God's +sake, let us throw off this nightmare, for a little while, +at least! What is there, Ruth, among Doctor Barnard's +music that you can manage?" +</p> +<p> +Barnard's collection in general inclined to the severely +classical, but we disinterred from the heap a few lighter +works of an old-fashioned kind, including a volume of +Mendelssohn's <i>Lieder ohne Worte</i>, and with one of these +Miss Bellingham made trial of her skill, playing it with +excellent taste and quite adequate execution. That, at +least, was her father's verdict; for, as to me, I found +it the perfection of happiness merely to sit and look at +her—a state of mind that would have been in no wise +disturbed even by <i>Silvery Waves</i> or <i>The Maiden's +Prayer</i>. +</p> +<p> +Thus with simple, homely music, and conversation +always cheerful and sometimes brilliant, slipped away +one of the pleasantest evenings of my life, and slipped +away all too soon. St. Dunstan's clock was the fly in +the ointment, for it boomed out intrusively the hour +of eleven just as my guests were beginning thoroughly +to appreciate one another; and thereby carried the sun +(with a minor paternal satellite) out of the firmament +of my heaven. For I had, in my professional capacity, +given strict injunctions that Mr. Bellingham should on +no account sit up late; and now, in my social capacity, +I had smilingly to hear "the doctor's orders" quoted. +It was a scurvy return for all my care. +</p> +<p> +When Mr. and Miss Bellingham departed, Thorndyke +and Jervis would have gone too; but noting my +bereaved condition, and being withal compassionate and +tender of heart, they were persuaded to stay awhile +and bear me company in a consolatory pipe. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH11"><!-- CH11 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XI +</h2> + +<h3> +THE EVIDENCE REVIEWED +</h3> +<p> +"So the game has opened," observed Thorndyke, as he +struck a match. "The play has begun with a cautious +lead off by the other side. Very cautious, and not +very confident." +</p> +<p> +"Why do you say 'not very confident'?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Well, it is evident that Hurst—and, I fancy, +Jellicoe too—is anxious to buy off Bellingham's opposition, +and at a pretty long price, under the circumstances. +And when we consider how very little Bellingham +has to offer against the presumption of his +brother's death, it looks as if Hurst hadn't much to say +on his side." +</p> +<p> +"No," said Jervis, "he can't hold many trumps or +he wouldn't be willing to pay four hundred a year for +his opponent's chance; and that is just as well, for it +seems to me that our own hand is a pretty poor one." +</p> +<p> +"We must look through our hand and see what we +do hold," said Thorndyke. "Our trump card at present—a +rather small one, I am afraid—is the obvious +intention of the testator that the bulk of the property +should go to his brother." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose you will begin your inquiries now," said I. +</p> +<p> +"We began them some time ago—the day after you +brought us the will, in fact. Jervis has been through +the registers and has ascertained that no interment +under the name of John Bellingham has taken place +since the disappearance; which was just what we expected. +He has also discovered that some other person +has been making similar inquiries; which, again, is what +we expected." +</p> +<p> +"And your own investigations?" +</p> +<p> +"Have given negative results for the most part. I +found Doctor Norbury, at the British Museum, very +friendly and helpful; so friendly, in fact, that I am +thinking whether I may not be able to enlist his help +in certain private researches of my own, with reference +to the changes effected by time in the physical properties +of certain substances." +</p> +<p> +"Oh; you haven't told me about that," said Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"No: I haven't really commenced to plan my experiments +yet, and they will probably lead to nothing +when I do. It occurred to me that, possibly, in the +course of time, certain molecular changes might take +place in substances such as wood, bone, pottery, stucco, +and other common materials, and that these changes +might alter their power of conducting or transmitting +molecular vibrations. Now, if this should turn out to +be the case, it would be a fact of considerable importance, +medico-legal and otherwise; for it would be +possible to determine approximately the age of any +object of known composition by testing its reactions +to electricity, heat, light and other molecular vibrations. +I thought of seeking Doctor Norbury's assistance because +he can furnish me with materials for experiment +of such great age that the reactions, if any, should +be extremely easy to demonstrate. But to return to +our case. I learned from him that John Bellingham +had certain friends in Paris—collectors and museum +officials—whom he was in the habit of visiting for the +purpose of study and exchange of specimens. I have +made inquiries of all of these, and none of them had +seen him during his last visit. In fact, I have not yet +discovered anyone who had seen Bellingham in Paris +on this occasion. So his visit there remains a mystery +for the present." +</p> +<p> +"It doesn't seem to be of much importance, since +he undoubtedly came back," I remarked; but to this +Thorndyke demurred. +</p> +<p> +"It is impossible to estimate the importance of the +unknown," said he. +</p> +<p> +"Well, how does the matter stand," asked Jervis, +"on the evidence that we have? John Bellingham +disappeared on a certain date. Is there anything to +show what was the manner of his disappearance?" +</p> +<p> +"The facts in our possession," said Thorndyke, +"which are mainly those set forth in the newspaper +report, suggest several alternative possibilities; and in +view of the coming inquiry—for they will, no doubt, +have to be gone into in Court, to some extent—it may +be worth while to consider them. There are five conceivable +hypotheses"—here Thorndyke checked them +on his fingers as he proceeded—"First, he may still be +alive. Second, he may have died and been buried +without identification. Third, he may have been murdered +by some unknown person. Fourth, he may have +been murdered by Hurst and his body concealed. Fifth, +he may have been murdered by his brother. Let us +examine these possibilities seriatim. +</p> +<p> +"First, he may still be alive. If he is, he must either +have disappeared voluntarily, have lost his memory +suddenly and not been identified, or have been imprisoned—on +a false charge or otherwise. Let us take +the first case—that of voluntary disappearance. Obviously, +its improbability is extreme." +</p> +<p> +"Jellicoe doesn't think so," said I. "He thinks it +quite on the cards that John Bellingham is alive. He +says that it is not a very unusual thing for a man to +disappear for a time." +</p> +<p> +"Then why is he applying for a presumption of +death?" +</p> +<p> +"Just what I asked him. He says that it is the correct +thing to do; that the entire responsibility rests +on the Court." +</p> +<p> +"That is all nonsense," said Thorndyke. "Jellicoe +is the trustee for his absent client, and, if he thinks that +client is alive, it is his duty to keep the estate intact; +and he knows that perfectly well. We may take it that +Jellicoe is of the same opinion as I am: that John +Bellingham is dead." +</p> +<p> +"Still," I urged, "men do disappear from time to +time, and turn up again after years of absence." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, but for a definite reason. Either they are +irresponsible vagabonds who take this way of shuffling +off their responsibilities, or they are men who have been +caught in a net of distasteful circumstances. For instance, +a civil servant or a solicitor or a tradesman finds +himself bound for life to a locality and an occupation +of intolerable monotony. Perhaps he has an ill-tempered +wife, who, after the amiable fashion of a certain +type of woman, thinking that her husband is pinned +down without a chance of escape, gives a free rein to +her temper. The man puts up with it for years, but at +last it becomes unbearable. Then he suddenly disappears; +and small blame to him. But this was not +Bellingham's case. He was a wealthy bachelor with +an engrossing interest in life, free to go whither he +would and to do whatsoever he wished. Why should +he disappear? The thing is incredible. +</p> +<p> +"As to his having lost his memory and remained +unidentified, that, also, is incredible in the case of a +man who had visiting-cards and letters in his pocket, +whose linen was marked, and who was being inquired +for everywhere by the police. As to his being in prison, +we may dismiss that possibility, inasmuch as a prisoner, +both before and after conviction, would have full opportunity +of communicating with his friends. +</p> +<p> +"The second possibility, that he may have died suddenly +and been buried without identification, is highly +improbable; but, as it is conceivable that the body +might have been robbed and the means of identification +thus lost, it remains as a possibility that has to be +considered, remote as it is. +</p> +<p> +"The third hypothesis, that he may have been murdered +by some unknown person, is, under the circumstances, +not wildly improbable; but, as the police were +on the look out and a detailed description of the missing +man's person was published in the papers, it would +involve the complete concealment of the body. But +this would exclude the most probable form of the +crime—the casual robbery with violence. It is therefore +possible, but highly improbable. +</p> +<p> +"The fourth hypothesis is that Bellingham was +murdered by Hurst. Now the one fact which militates +against this view is that Hurst apparently had no +motive for committing the murder. We are assured +by Jellicoe that no one but himself knew the contents +of the will, and if this is so—but, mind, we have no +evidence that it is so—Hurst would have no reason to +suppose that he had anything material to gain by his +cousin's death. Otherwise the hypothesis presents no +inherent improbabilities. The man was last seen alive +at Hurst's house. He was seen to enter it and he was +never seen to leave it—we are still taking the facts as +stated in the newspapers, remember—and it now appears +that he stands to benefit enormously by that +man's death." +</p> +<p> +"But," I objected, "you are forgetting that, directly +the man was missed, Hurst and the servants together +searched the entire house." +</p> +<p> +"Yes. What did they search for?" +</p> +<p> +"Why, for Mr. Bellingham, of course." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly; for Mr. Bellingham. That is, for a living +man. Now how do you search a house for a living +man? You look in all the rooms. When you look in a +room, if he is there, you see him; if you do not see him, +you assume that he is not there. You don't look under +the sofa or behind the piano, you don't pull out large +drawers or open cupboards. You just look into the +rooms. That is what these people seem to have done. +And they did not see Mr. Bellingham. But Mr. Bellingham's +corpse might have been stowed away out of sight +in any one of the rooms that they looked into." +</p> +<p> +"That is a grim thought," said Jervis; "But it is +perfectly true. There is no evidence that the man was +not lying dead in the house at the very time of the +search." +</p> +<p> +"But even so," said I, "there was the body to be +disposed of somehow. Now how could he possibly have +got rid of the body without being observed?" +</p> +<p> +"Ah!" said Thorndyke, "now we are touching on a +point of crucial importance. If anyone should ever +write a treatise on the art of murder—not an exhibition +of literary fireworks like De Quincey's, but a genuine +working treatise—he might leave all other technical +details to take care of themselves if he could describe +some really practicable plan for disposing of the body. +That is, and always has been, the great stumbling-block +to the murderer: to get rid of the body. The human +body," he continued, thoughtfully regarding his pipe, +just as, in the days of my pupilage, he was wont to +regard the black-board chalk, "is a very remarkable +object. It presents a combination of properties that +makes it singularly difficult to conceal permanently. +It is bulky and of an awkward shape, it is heavy, it is +completely incombustible, it is chemically unstable, and +its decomposition yields great volumes of highly odorous +gases, and it nevertheless contains identifiable structures +of the highest degree of permanence. It is extremely +difficult to preserve unchanged, and it is still +more difficult completely to destroy. The essential +permanence of the human body is well shown in the +classical case of Eugene Aram; but a still more striking +instance is that of Seqenen-Ra the Third, one of the +last kings of the seventeenth Egyptian dynasty. Here, +after a lapse of some four thousand years, it has been +possible to determine, not only the cause of death and +the manner of its occurrence, but the way in which the +king fell, the nature of the weapon with which the fatal +wound was inflicted, and even the position of the assailant. +And the permanence of the body under other +conditions is admirably shown in the case of Doctor +Parkman, of Boston, U.S.A., in which identification +was actually effected by means of remains collected +from the ashes of a furnace." +</p> +<p> +"Then we may take it," said Jervis, "that the world +has not yet seen the last of John Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"I think we may regard that as almost a certainty," +replied Thorndyke. "The only question—and a very +important one—is as to when the reappearance may +take place. It may be to-morrow or it may be centuries +hence, when all the issues involved have been +forgotten." +</p> +<p> +"Assuming," said I, "for the sake of argument, that +Hurst did murder him and that the body was concealed +in the study at the time the search was made. How +could it have been disposed of? If you had been in +Hurst's place, how would you have gone to work?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke smiled at the bluntness of my question. +</p> +<p> +"You are asking me for an incriminating statement," +said he, "delivered in the presence of a witness too. +But, as a matter of fact, there is no use in speculating +<i>a priori</i>; we should have to reconstruct a purely +imaginary situation, the circumstances of which are unknown +to us, and we should almost certainly reconstruct it +wrong. What we may fairly assume is that no reasonable +person, no matter how immoral, would find himself +in the position that you suggest. Murder is usually a +crime of impulse, and the murderer a person of feeble +self-control. Such persons are most unlikely to make +elaborate and ingenious arrangements for the disposal +of the bodies of their victims. Even the cold-blooded +perpetrators of the most carefully planned murders +appear, as I have said, to break down at this point. +The almost insuperable difficulty of getting rid of a +human body is not appreciated until the murderer suddenly +finds himself face to face with it. +</p> +<p> +"In the case that you are suggesting, the choice +would seem to lie between burial on the premises or +dismemberment and dispersal of the fragments; and +either method would be pretty certain to lead to discovery." +</p> +<p> +"As illustrated by the remains of which you were +speaking to Mr. Bellingham," Jervis remarked. +</p> +<p> +"Exactly," Thorndyke answered, "though we could +hardly imagine a reasonably intelligent criminal adopting +a watercress-bed as a hiding-place." +</p> +<p> +"No. That was certainly an error of judgment. +By the way, I thought it best to say nothing while you +were talking to Bellingham, but I noticed that, in discussing +the possibility of those being the bones of his +brother, you made no comment on the absence of the +third finger of the left hand. I am sure you didn't overlook +it, but isn't it a point of some importance?" +</p> +<p> +"As to identification? Under the present circumstances, +I think not. If there were a man missing who +had lost that finger it would, of course, be an important +fact. But I have not heard of any such man. Or, +again, if there were any evidence that the finger had +been removed before death, it would be highly important. +But there is no such evidence. It may have +been cut off after death, and there is where the real +significance of its absence lies." +</p> +<p> +"I don't quite see what you mean," said Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"I mean that, if there is no report of any missing +man who had lost that particular finger, the probability +is that the finger was removed after death. And then +arises the interesting question of motive. Why should +it have been removed? It could hardly have become +detached accidentally. What do you suggest?" +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Jervis, "it might have been a peculiar +finger; a finger, for instance, with some characteristic +deformity, such as an ankylosed joint, which would be +easy to identify." +</p> +<p> +"Yes; but that explanation introduces the same +difficulty. No person with a deformed or ankylosed +finger has been reported as missing." +</p> +<p> +Jervis puckered up his brows and looked at me. +</p> +<p> +"I'm hanged if I see any other explanation," he said. +"Do you, Berkeley?" +</p> +<p> +I shook my head. +</p> +<p> +"Don't forget which finger it is that is missing," +said Thorndyke. "The third finger on the left +hand." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, I see!" said Jervis. "The ring-finger. You +mean it may have been removed for the sake of a ring +that wouldn't come off." +</p> +<p> +"Yes. It would not be the first instance of the kind. +Fingers have been severed from dead hands—and even +from living ones—for the sake of rings that were too +tight to be drawn off. And the fact that it is the left +hand supports this suggestion; for a ring that was +inconveniently tight would be worn by preference on +the left hand, as that is usually slightly smaller than +the right. What is the matter, Berkeley?" +</p> +<p> +A sudden light had burst upon me, and I suppose +my countenance betrayed the fact. +</p> +<p> +"I am a confounded fool!" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't say that," said Jervis. "Give your +friends a chance." +</p> +<p> +"I ought to have seen this long ago and told you +about it. John Bellingham did wear a ring, and it was +so tight that, when once he had got it on, he could +never get it off again." +</p> +<p> +"Do you happen to know on which hand he wore +it?" Thorndyke asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. It was the left hand; because Miss Bellingham, +who told me about it, said that he would never +have been able to get the ring on at all but for the fact +that his left hand was slightly smaller than his right." +</p> +<p> +"There it is, then," said Thorndyke. "With this +new fact in our possession, the absence of this finger +furnishes the starting-point of some very curious speculations." +</p> +<p> +"As, for instance?" said Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"Ah, under the circumstances, I must leave you to +pursue those speculations independently. I am now +acting for Mr. Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +Jervis grinned and was silent for a while, refilling his +pipe thoughtfully; but when he had got it alight he +resumed. +</p> +<p> +"To return to the question of the disappearance; +you don't consider it highly improbable that Bellingham +might have been murdered by Hurst?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't imagine that I am making an accusation. +I am considering the various probabilities merely in +the abstract. The same reasoning applies to the Bellinghams. +As to whether any of them did commit the +murder, that is a question of personal character. I +certainly do not suspect the Bellinghams after having +seen them, and with regard to Hurst, I know nothing, +or at least very little, to his disadvantage." +</p> +<p> +"Do you know anything?" asked Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"Well," Thorndyke said, with some hesitation, "it +seems a thought unkind to rake up the little details +of a man's past, and yet it has to be done. I have, of +course, made the usual routine inquiries concerning +the parties to this affair, and this is what they have +brought to light: +</p> +<p> +"Hurst, as you know, is a stockbroker—a man of +good position and reputation; but, about ten years +ago, he seems to have committed an indiscretion, to +put it mildly, which nearly got him into rather serious +difficulties. He appears to have speculated rather +heavily and considerably beyond his means, for when +a sudden spasm of the market upset his calculations, +it turned out that he had been employing his clients' +capital and securities. For a time it looked as if there +was going to be serious trouble; then, quite unexpectedly, +he managed to raise the necessary amount +in some way and settle all claims. Whence he got the +money has never been discovered to this day, which +is a curious circumstance, seeing that the deficiency was +rather over five thousand pounds; but the important +fact is that he did get it and that he paid up all that he +owed. So that he was only a potential defaulter, so to +speak; and, discreditable as the affair undoubtedly was, +it does not seem to have any direct bearing on this +present case." +</p> +<p> +"No," Jervis agreed, "though it makes one consider +his position with more attention than one would otherwise." +</p> +<p> +"Undoubtedly," said Thorndyke. "A reckless +gambler is a man whose conduct cannot be relied on. +He is subject to sudden vicissitudes of fortune which +may force him into other kinds of wrongdoing. Many +an embezzlement has been preceded by an unlucky +plunge on the turf." +</p> +<p> +"Assuming the responsibility for this disappearance +to lie between Hurst and—and the Bellinghams," said +I, with an uncomfortable gulp as I mentioned the name +of my friends, "to which side does the balance of +probability incline?" +</p> +<p> +"To the side of Hurst, I should say, without doubt," +replied Thorndyke. "The case stands thus—on the +facts presented to us: Hurst appears to have had no +motive for killing the deceased (as we will call him); +but the man was seen to enter his house, was never seen +to leave it, and was never again seen alive. Bellingham, +on the other hand, had a motive, as he believed himself +to be the principal beneficiary under the will. But +the deceased was not seen at his house, and there is no +evidence that he went to the house or to the neighbourhood +of the house, excepting the scarab that was found +there. But the evidence of the scarab is vitiated by +the fact that Hurst was present when it was picked up, +and that it was found on a spot over which Hurst had +passed only a few minutes previously. Until Hurst is +cleared, it seems to me that the presence of the scarab +proves nothing against the Bellinghams." +</p> +<p> +"Then your opinions on the case," said I, "are based +entirely on the facts that have been made public." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, mainly. I do not necessarily accept those +facts just as they are presented, and I may have certain +views of my own on the case. But if I have, I do not +feel in a position to discuss them. For the present, +discussion has to be limited to the facts and inferences +offered by the parties concerned." +</p> +<p> +"There!" exclaimed Jervis, rising to knock out his +pipe, "that is where Thorndyke has you. He lets you +think you're in the very thick of the 'know' until one +fine morning you wake up and discover that you have +only been a gaping outsider; and then you are mightily +astonished—and so are the other side, too, for that +matter. But we must really be off now, mustn't we, +reverend senior?" +</p> +<p> +"I suppose we must," replied Thorndyke; and, as +he drew on his gloves, he asked: "Have you heard +from Barnard lately?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, yes," I answered. "I wrote to him at Smyrna +to say that the practice was flourishing and that I was +quite happy and contented, and that he might stay +away as long as he liked. He writes by return that he +will prolong his holiday if an opportunity offers, but +will let me know later." +</p> +<p> +"Gad," said Jervis, "it was a stroke of luck for +Barnard that Bellingham happened to have such a +magnificent daughter—there! don't mind me, old man. +You go in and win—she's worth it, isn't she, Thorndyke?" +</p> +<p> +"Miss Bellingham is a very charming young lady," +replied Thorndyke. "I am most favourably impressed +by both the father and the daughter, and I only trust +that we may be able to be of some service to them." +With this sedate little speech Thorndyke shook my +hand, and I watched my two friends go on their way +until their fading shapes were swallowed up in the +darkness of Fetter Lane. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH12"><!-- CH12 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XII +</h2> + +<h3> +A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY +</h3> +<p> +It was some two or three mornings after my little +supper-party that, as I stood in the consulting-room +brushing my hat preparatory to starting on my morning +round, Adolphus appeared at the door to announce +two gentlemen waiting in the surgery. I told him to +bring them in, and a moment later Thorndyke entered, +accompanied by Jervis. I noted that they looked uncommonly +large in the little apartment, especially +Thorndyke, but I had no time to consider this phenomenon, +for the latter, when he had shaken my hand, +proceeded at once to explain the object of their visit. +</p> +<p> +"We have come to ask a favour, Berkeley," he said; +"to ask you to do us a very great service in the interests +of your friends, the Bellinghams." +</p> +<p> +"You know I shall be delighted," I said warmly. +"What is it?" +</p> +<p> +"I will explain. You know—or perhaps you don't—that +the police have collected all the bones that have +been discovered and deposited them in the mortuary +at Woodford, where they are to be viewed by the +coroner's jury. Now, it has become imperative that I +should have more definite and reliable information +about them than I can get from the newspapers. The +natural thing would be for me to go down and examine +them myself, but there are circumstances that make it +very desirable that my connection with the case should +not leak out. Consequently, I can't go myself, and, +for the same reason, I can't send Jervis. On the other +hand, as it is now stated pretty openly that the police +consider the bones to be almost certainly those of John +Bellingham, it would seem perfectly natural that you, +as Godfrey Bellingham's doctor, should go down to +view them on his behalf." +</p> +<p> +"I should like to go," I said. "I would give anything +to go; but how is it to be managed? It would +mean a whole day off and leaving the practice to take +care of itself." +</p> +<p> +"I think that could be arranged," said Thorndyke; +"and the matter is really important for two reasons. +One is that the inquest opens to-morrow, and someone +certainly ought to be there to watch the proceedings +on Godfrey's behalf; and the other is that our client +has received notice from Hurst's solicitors that the +application would be heard in the Probate Court in a +few days." +</p> +<p> +"Isn't that rather sudden?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"It certainly suggests that there has been a good +deal more activity than we were given to understand. +But you see the importance of the affair. The inquest +will be a sort of dress rehearsal for the Probate Court, +and it is quite essential that we should have a chance +of estimating the management." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I see that. But how are we to manage about +the practice?" +</p> +<p> +"We shall find you a substitute." +</p> +<p> +"Through a medical agent?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Jervis. "Turcival will find us a man; +in fact, he has done it. I saw him this morning; he +has a man who is waiting up in town to negotiate for +the purchase of a practice and who would do the job +for a couple of guineas. Quite a reliable man. Only +say the word, and I will run off to Adam Street and +engage him definitely." +</p> +<p> +"Very well. You engage the locum tenens, and I +will be prepared to start for Woodford as soon as he +turns up." +</p> +<p> +"Excellent!" said Thorndyke. "That is a great +weight off my mind. And if you could manage to drop +in this evening and smoke a pipe with us we could talk +over the plan of campaign and let you know what +items of information we are particularly in want of." +</p> +<p> +I promised to turn up at King's Bench Walk as soon +after half-past eight as possible, and my two friends +then took their departure, leaving me to set out in +high spirits on my scanty round of visits. +</p> +<p> +It is surprising what different aspects things present +from different points of view; how relative are our +estimates of the conditions and circumstances of life. +To the urban workman—the journeyman baker or +tailor, for instance, labouring year in year out in a +single building—a holiday ramble on Hampstead Heath +is a veritable voyage of discovery; whereas to the sailor +the shifting panorama of the whole wide world is but +the commonplace of the day's work. +</p> +<p> +So I reflected as I took my place in the train at +Liverpool Street on the following day. There had been +a time when a trip by rail to the borders of Epping +Forest would have been far from a thrilling experience; +now, after vegetating in the little world of Fetter +Lane, it was quite an adventure. +</p> +<p> +The enforced inactivity of a railway journey is +favourable to thought, and I had much to think about. +The last few weeks had witnessed momentous changes +in my outlook. New interests had arisen, new friendships +had grown up; and, above all, there had stolen +into my life that supreme influence that, for good or +for evil, according to my fortune, was to colour and +pervade it even to its close. Those few days of companionable +labour in the reading-room, with the homely +hospitalities of the milk-shop and the pleasant walks +homeward through the friendly London streets, had +called into existence a new world—a world in which +the gracious personality of Ruth Bellingham was the +one dominating reality. And thus, as I leaned back in +a corner of the railway carriage with an unlighted pipe +in my hand, the events of the immediate past, together +with those more problematical ones of the impending +future, occupied me rather to the exclusion of the business +of the moment, which was to review the remains +collected in the Woodford mortuary, until, as the train +approached Stratford, the odours of the soap and bone-manure +factories poured in at the open window and +(by a natural association of ideas) brought me back to +the object of my quest. +</p> +<p> +As to the exact purpose of this expedition, I was not +very clear; but I knew that I was acting as Thorndyke's +proxy and thrilled with pride at the thought. +But what particular light my investigations were to +throw upon the intricate Bellingham case I had no +very definite idea. With a view to fixing the course +of procedure in my mind, I took Thorndyke's written +instructions from my pocket and read them over carefully. +They were very full and explicit, making ample +allowance for my lack of experience in medico-legal +matters:— +</p> +<br> +<blockquote> +<i> +1. Do not appear to make minute investigations or +in any way excite remark.<br> +<br> + +2. Ascertain if all the bones belonging to each region +are present, and if not, which are missing.<br> +<br> + +3. Measure the extreme length of the principal bones +and compare those of opposite sides.<br> +<br> + +4. Examine the bones with reference to the age, sex, +and muscular development of the deceased.<br> +<br> + +5. Note the presence or absence of signs of constitutional +disease, local disease of bone or adjacent structures, +old or recent injuries, and any other departures +from the normal or usual.<br> +<br> + +6. Observe the presence or absence of adipocere and +its position, if present.<br> +<br> + +7. Note any remains of tendons, ligaments, or other +soft structures.<br> +<br> + +8. Examine the Sidcup hand with reference to the +question as to whether the finger was separated before +or after death.<br> +<br> + +9. Estimate the probable period of submersion and +note any changes (as, e.g., mineral or organic staining) +due to the character of the water or mud.<br> +<br> + +10. Ascertain the circumstances (immediate and remote) +that led to the discovery of the bones and the +names of the persons concerned in those circumstances.<br> +<br> + +11. Commit all information to writing as soon as +possible, and make plans and diagrams on the spot, if +circumstances permit.<br> +<br> + +12. Preserve an impassive exterior; listen attentively +but without eagerness; ask as few questions as +possible; pursue any inquiry that your observations on +the spot may suggest. +</i> +</blockquote> +<br> +<p> +These were my instructions, and, considering that I +was going merely to inspect a few dry bones, they +appeared rather formidable; in fact, the more I read +them over the greater became my misgivings as to my +qualifications for the task. +</p> +<p> +As I approached the mortuary it became evident that +some, at least, of Thorndyke's admonitions were by no +means unnecessary. The place was in charge of a +police-sergeant, who watched my approach suspiciously; +and some half-dozen men, obviously newspaper +reporters, hovered about the entrance like a pack +of jackals. I presented the coroner's order which Mr. +Marchmont had obtained, and which the sergeant read +with his back against the wall, to prevent the newspaper +men from looking over his shoulder. +</p> +<p> +My credentials being found satisfactory, the door +was unlocked and I entered, accompanied by three +enterprising reporters, whom, however, the sergeant +summarily ejected and locked out, returning to usher +me into the presence and to observe my proceedings +with intelligent but highly embarrassing +interest. +</p> +<p> +The bones were laid out on a large table and covered +with a sheet, which the sergeant slowly turned back, +watching my face intently as he did so to note the impression +that the spectacle made upon me. I imagine +that he must have been somewhat disappointed by my +impassive demeanour, for the remains suggested to me +nothing more than a rather shabby set of "student's +osteology." The whole collection had been set out (by +the police-surgeon, as the sergeant informed me) in +their proper anatomical order; notwithstanding which +I counted them over carefully to make sure that none +were missing, checking them by the list with which +Thorndyke had furnished me. +</p> +<p> +"I see you have found the left thigh-bone," I remarked, +observing that this did not appear in the list. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said the sergeant; "that turned up yesterday +evening in a big pond called Baldwin's Pond in the +Sand-pit plain, near Little Monk Wood." +</p> +<p> +"Is that near here?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"In the forest up Loughton way," was the reply. +</p> +<p> +I made a note of the fact (on which the sergeant +looked as if he was sorry he had mentioned it), and +then turned my attention to a general consideration of +the bones before examining them in detail. Their +appearance would have been improved and examination +facilitated by a thorough scrubbing, for they were +just as they had been taken from their respective +resting-places, and it was difficult to decide whether +their reddish-yellow colour was an actual stain or due +to a deposit on the surface. In any case, as it affected +them all alike, I thought it an interesting feature and +made a note of it. They bore numerous traces of their +sojourn in the various ponds from which they had been +recovered, but these gave me little help in determining +the length of time during which they had been submerged. +They were, of course, encrusted with mud, and +little wisps of pond-weed stuck to them in places; but +these facts furnished only the vaguest measure of time. +</p> +<p> +Some of the traces were, indeed, more informing. To +several of the bones, for instance, there adhered the +dried egg-clusters of the common pond-snail, and in +one of the hollows of the right shoulder-blade (the +"infra-spinous fossa") was a group of the mud-built +tubes of the red river-worm. These remains gave proof +of a considerable period of submersion, and since they +could not have been deposited on the bones until all the +flesh had disappeared, they furnished evidence that +some time—a month or two, at any rate—had elapsed +since this had happened. Incidentally, too, their distribution +showed the position in which the bones had +lain, and though this appeared to be of no importance +in the existing circumstances, I made careful notes of +the situation of each adherent body, illustrating their +position by rough sketches. +</p> +<p> +The sergeant watched my proceedings with an indulgent +smile. +</p> +<p> +"You're making a regular inventory, sir," he remarked, +"as if you were going to put 'em up for auction. +I shouldn't think those snails' eggs would be much +help in identification. And all that has been done already," +he added as I produced my measuring-tape. +</p> +<p> +"No doubt," I replied; "but my business is to make +independent observations, to check the others, if necessary." +And I proceeded to measure each of the principal +bones separately and to compare those of the +opposite sides. The agreement in dimensions and +general characteristics of the pairs of bones left little +doubt that all were parts of one skeleton, a conclusion +that was confirmed by the eburnated patch on the head +of the right thigh-bone and the corresponding patch +in the socket of the right hip-bone. When I had finished +my measurements I went over the entire series of +bones in detail, examining each with the closest attention +for any of those signs which Thorndyke had +indicated, and eliciting nothing but a monotonously +reiterated negative. They were distressingly and disappointingly +normal. +</p> +<p> +"Well, sir, and what do you make of 'em?" the +sergeant asked cheerfully as I shut up my note-book +and straightened my back. "Whose bones are they? +Are they Mr. Bellingham's, think ye?" +</p> +<p> +"I should be very sorry to say whose bones they +are," I replied. "One bone is very much like another, +you know." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose it is," he agreed; "but I thought that, +with all that measuring and all those notes, you might +have arrived at something definite." Evidently he was +disappointed in me; and I was somewhat disappointed +in myself when I contrasted Thorndyke's elaborate instructions +with the meagre result of my investigations. +For what did my discoveries amount to? And how +much was the inquiry advanced by the few entries in +my note-book? +</p> +<p> +The bones were apparently those of a man of fair +though not remarkable muscular development; over +thirty years of age, but how much older I was unable +to say. His height I judged roughly to be five feet +eight inches, but my measurements would furnish data +for a more exact estimate by Thorndyke. Beyond this +the bones were quite uncharacteristic. There were no +signs of disease either local or general, no indications +of injuries either old or recent, no departures of any +kind from the normal or usual; and the dismemberment +had been effected with such care that there was +not a single scratch on any of the separated surfaces. +Of adipocere (the peculiar waxy or soapy substance +that is commonly found in bodies that have slowly decayed +in damp situations) there was not a trace; and +the only remnant of the soft structures was a faint +indication, like a spot of dried glue, of the tendon on +the tip of the right elbow. +</p> +<p> +The sergeant was in the act of replacing the sheet, +with the air of a showman who has just given an exhibition, +when there came a sharp rapping on the +mortuary door. The officer finished spreading the sheet +with official precision, and having ushered me out into +the lobby, turned the key and admitted three persons, +holding the door open after they had entered for me to +go out. But the appearance of the new-comers inclined +me to linger. One of them was a local constable, evidently +in official charge; a second was a labouring man, +very muddy and wet, who carried a small sack; while in +the third I thought I scented a professional brother. +</p> +<p> +The sergeant continued to hold the door open. +</p> +<p> +"Nothing more I can do for you, sir?" he asked +genially. +</p> +<p> +"Is that the divisional surgeon?" I inquired. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I am the divisional surgeon," the new-comer +answered. "Did you want anything of me?" +</p> +<p> +"This," said the sergeant, "is a medical gentleman +who has got permission from the coroner to inspect the +remains. He is acting for the family of the deceased—I +mean, for the family of Mr. Bellingham," he +added in answer to an inquiring glance from the +surgeon. +</p> +<p> +"I see," said the latter. "Well, they have found +the rest of the trunk, including, I understand, the ribs +that were missing from the other part. Isn't that so, +Davis?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, sir," replied the constable. "Inspector Badger +says all the ribs is here, and all the bones of the neck +as well." +</p> +<p> +"The inspector seems to be an anatomist," I remarked. +</p> +<p> +The sergeant grinned. "He's a very knowing gentleman, +is Mr. Badger. He came down here this morning +quite early and spent a long time looking over the +bones and checking them by some notes in his pocket-book. +I fancy he's got something on, but he was +precious close about it." +</p> +<p> +Here the sergeant shut up rather suddenly—perhaps +contrasting his own conduct with that of his superior. +</p> +<p> +"Let us have these new bones out on the table," +said the police-surgeon. "Take that sheet off, and +don't shoot them out as if they were coals. Hand them +out carefully." +</p> +<p> +The labourer fished out the wet and muddy bones +one by one from the sack, and as he laid them on the +table the surgeon arranged them in their proper relative +positions. +</p> +<p> +"This has been a neatly executed job," he remarked; +"none of your clumsy hacking with a chopper or a saw. +The bones have been cleanly separated at the joints. +The fellow who did this must have had some anatomical +knowledge, unless he was a butcher, which, by the way, +is not impossible. He has used his knife uncommonly +skilfully, and you notice that each arm was taken off +with the scapula attached, just as a butcher takes off a +shoulder of mutton. Are there any more bones in that +bag?" +</p> +<p> +"No, sir," replied the labourer, wiping his hands +with an air of finality on the posterior aspect of his +trousers; "that's the lot." +</p> +<p> +The surgeon looked thoughtfully at the bones as +he gave a final touch to their arrangement, and remarked: +</p> +<p> +"The inspector is right. All the bones of the neck +are there. Very odd. Don't you think so?" +</p> +<p> +"You mean—" +</p> +<p> +"I mean that this very eccentric murderer seems to +have given himself such an extraordinary amount of +trouble for no reason that one can see. There are +these neck vertebrae, for instance. He must have carefully +separated the skull from the atlas instead of just +cutting through the neck. Then there is the way he +divided the trunk; the twelfth ribs have just come in +with this lot, but the twelfth dorsal vertebra to which +they belong was attached to the lower half. Imagine +the trouble he must have taken to do that, and without +cutting or hacking the bones about, either. It is extraordinary. +This is rather interesting, by the way. Handle it carefully." +</p> +<p> +He picked up the breast-bone daintily—for it was +covered with wet mud—and handed it to me with the +remark: "That is the most definite piece of evidence +we have." +</p> +<p> +"You mean," I said, "that the union of the two +parts into a single mass fixes this as the skeleton of an +elderly man?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that is the obvious suggestion, which is confirmed +by the deposit of bone in the rib-cartilages. You +can tell the inspector, Davis, that I have checked this +lot of bones and that they are all here." +</p> +<p> +"Would you mind writing it down, sir?" said the +constable. "Inspector Badger said I was to have +everything in writing." +</p> +<p> +The surgeon took out his pocket-book, and, while he +was selecting a suitable piece of paper, he asked: "Did +you form any opinion as to the height of the deceased?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I thought he would be about five feet eight" +(here I caught the sergeant's eyes fixed on me with a +knowing leer). +</p> +<p> +"I made it five eight and a half," said the police-surgeon; +"but we shall know better when we have +seen the lower leg-bones. Where was this lot found, +Davis?" +</p> +<p> +"In the pond just off the road in Lord's Bushes, sir, +and the inspector has gone off now to—" +</p> +<p> +"Never mind where he's gone," interrupted the +sergeant. "You just answer questions and attend to +your business." +</p> +<p> +The sergeant's reproof conveyed a hint to me on +which I was not slow to act. Friendly as my professional +colleague was, it was clear that the police were +disposed to treat me as an interloper who was to be +kept out of the "know" as far as possible. Accordingly +I thanked my colleague and the sergeant for their +courtesy, and bidding them adieu until we should meet +at the inquest, took my departure and walked away +quickly until I found an inconspicuous position from +which I could keep the door of the mortuary in view. +A few moments later I saw Constable Davis emerge +and stride away up the road. +</p> +<p> +I watched his rapidly diminishing figure until he had +gone as far as I considered desirable, and then I set +forth in his wake. The road led straight away from +the village, and in less than half a mile entered the +outskirts of the forest. Here I quickened my pace to +close up somewhat, and it was well that I did so, for +suddenly he diverged from the road into a green lane, +where for a while I lost sight of him. Still hurrying +forward, I again caught sight of him just as he turned +off into a narrow path that entered a beech wood with +a thickish undergrowth of holly, along which I followed +him for several minutes, gradually decreasing the distance +between us, until suddenly there fell on my ear +a rhythmical, metallic sound like the clank of a pump. +Soon after I caught the sound of men's voices, and then +the constable struck off the path into the wood. +</p> +<p> +I now advanced more cautiously, endeavouring to +locate the search party by the sound of the pump, and +when I had done this I made a little detour so that I +might approach from the opposite direction to that +from which the constable had appeared. +</p> +<p> +Still guided by the noise of the pump, I at length +came out into a small opening among the trees and +halted to survey the scene. The centre of the opening +was occupied by a small pond, not more than a dozen +yards across, by the side of which stood a builder's +handcart. The little two-wheeled vehicle had evidently +been used to convey the appliances which were deposited +on the ground near it, and which consisted of a large +tub—now filled with water—a shovel, a rake, a sieve, +and a portable pump, the latter being fitted with a +long delivery hose. There were three men besides the +constable, one of whom was working the handle of the +pump, while another was glancing at a paper that the +constable had just delivered to him. He looked up +sharply as I appeared, and viewed me with unconcealed +disfavour. +</p> +<p> +"Hallo, sir!" said he. "You can't come here." +</p> +<p> +Now, seeing that I actually was here, this was clearly +a mistake, and I ventured to point out the fallacy. +</p> +<p> +"Well, I can't allow you to stay here. Our business +is of a private nature." +</p> +<p> +"I know exactly what your business is, Inspector +Badger." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, do you?" said he, surveying me with a foxy +smile. "And I expect I know what yours is, too. But +we can't have any of you newspaper gentry spying on +us just at present, so you just be off." +</p> +<p> +I thought it best to undeceive him at once, and accordingly, +having explained who I was, I showed him +the coroner's permit, which he read with manifest +annoyance. +</p> +<p> +"This is all very well, sir," said he as he handed me +back the paper, "but it doesn't authorise you to come +spying on the proceedings of the police. Any remains +that we discover will be deposited in the mortuary, +where you can inspect them to your heart's content; +but you can't stay here and watch us." +</p> +<p> +I had no defined object in keeping a watch on the +inspector's proceedings; but the sergeant's indiscreet +hint had aroused my curiosity, which was further excited +by Mr. Badger's evident desire to get rid of me. +Moreover, while we had been talking, the pump had +stopped (the muddy floor of the pond being now pretty +fully exposed), and the inspector's assistant was handling +the shovel impatiently. +</p> +<p> +"Now, I put it to you, Inspector," said I, persuasively, +"is it politic of you to allow it to be said that +you refused an authorised representative of the family +facilities for verifying any statements that you may +make hereafter?" +</p> +<p> +"What do you mean?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +"I mean that if you should happen to find some bone +which could be identified as part of the body of Mr. +Bellingham, that fact would be of more importance to +his family than to anyone else. You know that there +is a very valuable estate and a rather difficult will." +</p> +<p> +"I didn't know it, and I don't see the bearing of it +now" (neither did I, for that matter); "but if you +make such a point of being present at the search, I +can't very well refuse. Only you mustn't get in our +way, that's all." +</p> +<p> +On hearing this conclusion, his assistant, who looked +like a plain-clothes officer, took up his shovel and +stepped into the mud that formed the bottom of the +pond, stooping as he went and peering among the +masses of weed that had been left stranded by the withdrawal +of the water. The inspector watched him +anxiously, cautioning him from time to time to "look +out where he was treading"; the labourer left the +pump and craned forward from the margin of the mud, +and the constable and I looked on from our respective +points of vantage. For some time the search was fruitless. +Once the searcher stooped and picked up what +turned out to be a fragment of decayed wood; then +the remains of a long-deceased jay were discovered, +examined, and rejected. Suddenly the man bent down +by the side of a small pool that had been left in one +of the deeper hollows, stared intently into the mud, +and stood up. +</p> +<p> +"There's something here that looks like a bone, sir," +he sang out. +</p> +<p> +"Don't grub about, then," said the inspector. +"Drive your shovel right into the mud where you saw +it and bring it to the sieve." +</p> +<p> +The man followed out these instructions, and as he +came shorewards with a great pile of the slimy mud on +his shovel we all converged on the sieve, which the +inspector took up and held over the tub, directing the +constable and labourer to "lend a hand," meaning +thereby that they were to crowd round the tub and +exclude me as completely as possible. This, in fact, +they did very effectively with his assistance, for, when +the shovelful of mud had been deposited on the sieve, +the four men leaned over it and so nearly hid it from +view that it was only by craning over, first on one side +and then on the other, that I was able to catch an occasional +glimpse of it and to observe it gradually melting +away as the sieve, immersed in the water, was shaken +to and fro. +</p> +<p> +Presently the inspector raised the sieve from the +water and stooped over it more closely to examine its +contents. Apparently the examination yielded no very +conclusive results, for it was accompanied by a series +of rather dubious grunts. +</p> +<p> +At length the officer stood up, and turning to me +with a genial but foxy smile, held out the sieve for +my inspection. +</p> +<p> +"Like to see what we have found, Doctor?" said he. +</p> +<p> +I thanked him and stooped over the sieve. It contained +the sort of litter of twigs, skeleton leaves, weed, +pond-snails, dead shells, and fresh-water mussels that +one would expect to strain out from the mud of an +ancient pond; but in addition to these there were +three small bones which at the first glance gave me +quite a start until I saw what they were. +</p> +<p> +The inspector looked at me inquiringly. "H'm?" +said he. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I replied. "Very interesting." +</p> +<p> +"Those will be human bones, I fancy; h'm?" +</p> +<p> +"I should say so, undoubtedly," I answered. +</p> +<p> +"Now," said the inspector, "could you say, off-hand, +which finger those bones belong to?" +</p> +<p> +I smothered a grin (for I had been expecting this +question), and answered: +</p> +<p> +"I can say off-hand that they don't belong to any +finger. They are the bones of the left great toe." +</p> +<p> +The inspector's jaw dropped. "The deuce they +are!" he muttered. "H'm. I thought they looked +a bit stout." +</p> +<p> +"I expect," said I, "that if you go through the mud +close to where this came from you'll find the rest of +the foot." +</p> +<p> +The plain-clothes man proceeded at once to act on +my suggestion, taking the sieve with him to save time. +And sure enough, after filling it twice with the mud +from the bottom of the pool, the entire skeleton of the +foot was brought to light. +</p> +<p> +"Now you're happy, I suppose," said the inspector +when I had checked the bones and found them all +present. +</p> +<p> +"I should be more happy," I replied, "if I knew +what you were searching for in this pond. You weren't +looking for the foot, were you?" +</p> +<p> +"I was looking for anything that I might find," he +answered. "I shall go on searching until we have the +whole body. I shall go through all the streams and +ponds around here, except Connaught Water. That +I shall leave to the last, as it will be a case of dredging +from a boat and isn't so likely as the smaller ponds. +Perhaps the head will be there; it's deeper than any +of the others." +</p> +<p> +It now occurred to me that as I had learned all that +I was likely to learn, which was little enough, I might +as well leave the inspector to pursue his researches unembarrassed +by my presence. Accordingly I thanked +him for his assistance and departed by the way I had +come. +</p> +<p> +But as I retraced my steps along the shady path I +speculated profoundly on the officer's proceedings. My +examination of the mutilated hand had yielded the +conclusion that the finger had been removed either +after death or shortly before, but more probably after. +Someone else had evidently arrived at the same conclusion, +and had communicated his opinion to Inspector +Badger; for it was clear that that gentleman was in +full cry after the missing finger. But why was he +searching for it here when the hand had been found at +Sidcup? And what did he expect to learn from it +when he found it? There is nothing particularly characteristic +about a finger, or, at least, the bones of one; +and the object of the present researches was to determine +the identity of the person of whom these bones +were the remains. There was something mysterious +about the affair, something suggesting that Inspector +Badger was in possession of private information of +some kind. But what information could he have? +And whence could he have obtained it? These were +questions to which I could find no answer, and I was +still fruitlessly revolving them when I arrived at the +modest inn where the inquest was to be held, and where +I proposed to fortify myself with a correspondingly +modest lunch as a preparation for my attendance at +that inquiry. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH13"><!-- CH13 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XIII +</h2> + +<h3> +THE CROWNER'S QUEST +</h3> +<p> +The proceedings of that fine old institution, the +coroner's court, are apt to have their dignity impaired +by the somewhat unjudicial surroundings amidst which +they are conducted. The present inquiry was to be +held in a long room attached to the inn, ordinarily +devoted, as its various appurtenances testified, to gatherings +of a more convivial character. +</p> +<p> +Hither I betook myself after a protracted lunch and +a meditative pipe, and, being the first to arrive—the +jury having already been sworn and conducted to the +mortuary to view the remains—whiled away the time +by considering the habits of the customary occupants +of the room by the light of the objects contained in it. +A wooden target with one or two darts sticking in it +hung on the end wall and invited the Robin Hoods of +the village to try their skill; a system of incised marks +on the oaken table made sinister suggestions of shove-halfpenny; +and a large open box, filled with white +wigs, gaudily coloured robes and wooden spears, swords +and regalia, crudely coated with gilded paper, obviously +appertained to the puerile ceremonials of the Order of +Druids. +</p> +<p> +I had exhausted the interest of these relics and had +transferred my attentions to the picture gallery when +the other spectators and the witnesses began to arrive. +Hastily I seated myself in the only comfortable chair +besides the one placed at the head of the table, presumably +for the coroner; and I had hardly done so +when the latter entered accompanied by the jury. Immediately +after them came the sergeant, Inspector +Badger, one or two plain-clothes men, and finally the +divisional surgeon. +</p> +<p> +The coroner took his seat at the head of the table +and opened his book, and the jury seated themselves +on a couple of benches on one side of the long table. +I looked with some interest at the twelve "good men +and true." They were a representative group of British +tradesmen, quiet, attentive, and rather solemn; but +my attention was particularly attracted by a small +man with a very large head and a shock of upstanding +hair whom I had diagnosed, after a glance at his intelligent +but truculent countenance and the shiny knees +of his trousers, as the village cobbler. He sat between +the broad-shouldered foreman, who looked like a blacksmith, +and a dogged, red-faced man whose general +aspect of prosperous greasiness suggested the calling +of a butcher. +</p> +<p> +"The inquiry, gentlemen," the coroner commenced, +"upon which we are now entering concerns itself with +two questions. The first is that of identity: Who was +this person whose body we have just viewed? The +second is, How, when, and by what means did he come +by his death? We will take the identity first and begin +with the circumstances under which the body was discovered." +</p> +<p> +Here the cobbler stood up and raised an excessively +dirty hand. +</p> +<p> +"I rise, Mr. Chairman," said he, "to a point of +order." The other jurymen looked at him curiously +and some of them, I regret to say, grinned. "You +have referred, sir," he continued, "to the body which +we have just viewed. I wish to point out that we have +not viewed a body: we have viewed a collection of +bones." +</p> +<p> +"We will refer to them as the remains, if you prefer +it," said the coroner. +</p> +<p> +"I do prefer it," was the reply, and the objector sat +down. +</p> +<p> +"Very well," rejoined the coroner, and he proceeded +to call the witnesses, of whom the first was the labourer +who had discovered the bones in the watercress-bed. +</p> +<p> +"Do you happen to know how long it was since the +beds had been cleaned out previously?" the coroner +asked, when the witness had told the story of the discovery. +</p> +<p> +"They was cleaned out by Mr. Tapper's orders just +before he gave them up. That will be a little better +than two years ago. In May it were. I helped to +clean 'em. I worked on this very same place and there +wasn't no bones there then." +</p> +<p> +The coroner glanced at the jury. "Any questions, +gentlemen?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +The cobbler directed an intimidating scowl at the +witness and demanded: +</p> +<p> +"Were you searching for bones when you came on +these remains?" +</p> +<p> +"Me!" exclaimed the witness. "What should I +be searching for bones for?" +</p> +<p> +"Don't prevaricate," said the cobbler sternly; "answer +the question: Yes or no." +</p> +<p> +"No; of course I wasn't." +</p> +<p> +The juryman shook his enormous head dubiously as +though implying that he would let it pass this time +but it mustn't happen again; and the examination of +the witnesses continued, without eliciting anything that +was new to me or giving rise to any incident, until +the sergeant had described the finding of the right arm +in the Cuckoo Pits. +</p> +<p> +"Was this an accidental discovery?" the coroner +asked. +</p> +<p> +"No. We had instructions from Scotland Yard to +search any likely ponds in this neighbourhood." +</p> +<p> +The coroner discreetly forbore to press this matter +any farther, but my friend the cobbler was evidently +on the qui vive, and I anticipated a brisk cross-examination +for Mr. Badger when his turn came. The inspector +was apparently of the same opinion, for I saw +him cast a glance of the deepest malevolence at the +too inquiring disciple of St. Crispin. In fact, his turn +came next, and the cobbler's hair stood up with unholy +joy. +</p> +<p> +The finding of the lower half of the trunk in Staple's +Pond at Loughton was the inspector's own achievement, +but he was not boastful about it. The discovery, +he remarked, followed naturally on the previous one in +the Cuckoo Pits. +</p> +<p> +"Had you any private information that led you to +search this particular neighbourhood?" the cobbler +asked. +</p> +<p> +"We had no private information whatever," replied +Badger. +</p> +<p> +"Now I put it to you," pursued the juryman, shaking +a forensic, and very dirty, forefinger at the inspector; +"here are certain remains found at Sidcup; here are +certain other remains found at St. Mary Cray, and +certain others at Lee. All those places are in Kent. +Now isn't it very remarkable that you should come +straight down to Epping Forest, which is in Essex, and +search for those bones and find 'em?" +</p> +<p> +"We were making a systematic search of all likely +places," replied Badger. +</p> +<p> +"Exactly," said the cobbler, with a ferocious grin, +"that's just my point. I say, isn't it very funny that, +after finding remains in Kent some twenty miles from +here with the River Thames between, you should come +here to look for the bones and go straight to Staple's +Pond, where they happen to be—and find 'em?" +</p> +<p> +"It would have been more funny," Badger replied +sourly, "if we'd gone straight to a place where they +happened <i>not</i> to be—and found them." +</p> +<p> +A gratified snigger arose from the other eleven good +men and true, and the cobbler grinned savagely; but +before he could think of a suitable rejoinder the coroner +interposed. +</p> +<p> +"The question is not very material," he said, "and +we mustn't embarrass the police by unnecessary inquiries." +</p> +<p> +"It's my belief," said the cobbler, "that he knew +they were there all the time." +</p> +<p> +"The witness has stated that he had no private +information," said the coroner; and he proceeded to +take the rest of the inspector's evidence, watched closely +by the critical juror. +</p> +<p> +The account of the finding of the remains having been +given in full, the police-surgeon was called and sworn; +the jurymen straightened their backs with an air of +expectancy, and I turned over a page of my note-book. +</p> +<p> +"You have examined the bones at present lying in +the mortuary and forming the subject of this inquiry?" +the coroner asked. +</p> +<p> +"I have." +</p> +<p> +"Will you kindly tell us what you have observed?" +</p> +<p> +"I find that the bones are human bones, and are, in +my opinion, all parts of the same person. They form +a skeleton which is complete with the exception of the +skull, the third finger of the left hand, the knee-caps, +and the leg-bones—I mean the bones between the knees +and the ankles." +</p> +<p> +"Is there anything to account for the absence of the +missing finger?" +</p> +<p> +"No. There is no deformity and no sign of its having +been amputated during life. In my opinion it was +removed after death." +</p> +<p> +"Can you give us any description of the deceased?" +</p> +<p> +"I should say that these are the bones of an elderly +man, probably over sixty years of age, about five feet +eight and a half inches in height, of rather stout build, +fairly muscular, and well preserved. There are no signs +of disease excepting some old-standing rheumatic gout +of the right hip-joint." +</p> +<p> +"Can you form any opinion as to the cause of +death?" +</p> +<p> +"No. There are no marks of violence or signs of +injury. But it will be impossible to form any opinion +as to the cause of death until we have seen the skull." +</p> +<p> +"Did you note anything else of importance?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I was struck by the appearance of anatomical +knowledge and skill on the part of the person who dismembered +the body. The knowledge of anatomy is +proved by the fact that the corpse has been divided +into definite anatomical regions. For instance, the +bones of the neck are complete and include the top +joint of the backbone known as the atlas; whereas a +person without anatomical knowledge would probably +take off the head by cutting through the neck. Then +the arms have been separated with the scapula (or +shoulder-blade) and clavicle (or collar-bone) attached, +just as an arm would be removed for dissection. +</p> +<p> +"The skill is shown by the neat way in which the +dismemberment has been carried out. The parts have +not been rudely hacked asunder, but have been separated +at the joints so skilfully that I have not discovered +a single scratch or mark of the knife on any +of the bones." +</p> +<p> +"Can you suggest any class of person who would be +likely to possess the knowledge and skill to which you +refer?" +</p> +<p> +"It would, of course, be possessed by a surgeon or +medical student, and possibly by a butcher." +</p> +<p> +"You think that the person who dismembered this +body may have been a surgeon or a medical student?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; or a butcher. Someone accustomed to the +dismemberment of bodies and skilful with the knife." +</p> +<p> +Here the cobbler suddenly rose to his feet. +</p> +<p> +"I rise, Mr. Chairman," said he, "to protest against +the statement that has just been made." +</p> +<p> +"What statement?" demanded the coroner. +</p> +<p> +"Against the aspersion," continued the cobbler, with +an oratorical flourish, "that has been cast upon a +honourable calling." +</p> +<p> +"I don't understand you," said the coroner. +</p> +<p> +"Doctor Summers has insinuated that this murder +was committed by a butcher. Now a member of that +honourable calling is sitting on this jury—" +</p> +<p> +"You let me alone," growled the butcher. +</p> +<p> +"I will not let you alone," persisted the cobbler. +"I desire—" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, shut up, Pope!" This was from the foreman, +who, at the same moment, reached out an enormous +hairy hand with which he grabbed the cobbler's coat-tails +and brought him into a sitting posture with a +thump that shook the room. +</p> +<p> +But Mr. Pope, though seated, was not silenced. "I +desire," said he, "to have my protest put on record." +</p> +<p> +"I can't do that," said the coroner, "and I can't +allow you to interrupt the witnesses." +</p> +<p> +"I am acting," said Mr. Pope, "in the interests of +my friend here and the members of a honourable——" +</p> +<p> +But here the butcher turned on him savagely, and, +in a hoarse stage-whisper, exclaimed: +</p> +<p> +"Look here, Pope; you've got too much of what the +cat licks—" +</p> +<p> +"Gentlemen! gentlemen!" the coroner protested, +sternly; "I cannot permit this unseemly conduct. You +are forgetting the solemnity of the occasion and your +own responsible positions. I must insist on more decent +and decorous behaviour." +</p> +<p> +There was profound silence, in the midst of which +the butcher concluded in the same hoarse whisper: +</p> +<p> +"—licks 'er paws with." +</p> +<p> +The coroner cast a withering glance at him, and +turning to the witness, resumed the examination. +</p> +<p> +"Can you tell us, Doctor, how long a time has elapsed +since the death of the deceased?" +</p> +<p> +"I should say not less than eighteen months, but +probably more. How much more it is impossible from +inspection alone to say. The bones are perfectly clean—that +is, clean of all soft structures—and will remain +substantially in their present condition for many years." +</p> +<p> +"The evidence of the man who found the remains +in the watercress-bed suggests that they could not have +been there more than two years. Do the appearances, +in your opinion, agree with that view?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; perfectly." +</p> +<p> +"There is one more point, Doctor; a very important +one. Do you find anything in any of the bones, or all +of them together, which would enable you to identify +them as the bones of any particular individual?" +</p> +<p> +"No," replied Dr. Summers; "I found no peculiarity +that could furnish the means of personal identification." +</p> +<p> +"The description of a missing individual has been +given to us," said the coroner; "a man, fifty-nine +years of age, five feet eight inches in height, healthy, +well preserved, rather broad in build, and having an +old Pott's fracture of the left ankle. Do the remains +that you have examined agree with that description?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, in so far as agreement is possible. There is +no disagreement." +</p> +<p> +"The remains might be those of that individual?" +</p> +<p> +"They might; but there is no positive evidence that +they are. The description would apply to a large proportion +of elderly men, except as to the fracture." +</p> +<p> +"You found no signs of such a fracture?" +</p> +<p> +"No. Pott's fracture affects the bone called the +fibula. That is one of the bones that has not yet been +found, so there is no evidence on that point. The left +foot was quite normal, but then it would be in any +case, unless the fracture had resulted in great deformity." +</p> +<p> +"You estimated the height of the deceased as half +an inch greater than that of the missing person. Does +that constitute a disagreement?" +</p> +<p> +"No; my estimate is only approximate. As the +arms are complete and the legs are not, I have based +my calculations on the width across the two arms. +But measurement of the thigh-bones gives the same +result. The length of the thigh-bones is one foot seven +inches and five-eighths." +</p> +<p> +"So the deceased might not have been taller than +five feet eight?" +</p> +<p> +"That is so: from five feet eight to five feet nine." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you. I think that is all we want to ask +you, Doctor; unless the jury wish to put any questions." +</p> +<p> +He glanced uneasily at that august body, and instantly +the irrepressible Pope rose to the occasion. +</p> +<p> +"About that finger that is missing," said the cobbler. +"You say that it was cut off after death." +</p> +<p> +"That is my opinion." +</p> +<p> +"Now, can you tell us why it was cut off?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I cannot." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, come now, Doctor Summers, you must have +formed some opinion on the subject." +</p> +<p> +Here the coroner interposed. "The Doctor is only +concerned with evidence arising out of the actual examination +of the remains. Any personal opinions or +conjectures that he may have formed are not evidence, +and he must not be asked about them." +</p> +<p> +"But, sir," objected Pope, "we want to know why +that finger was cut off. It couldn't have been took off +for no reason. May I ask, sir, if the person who is missing +had anything peculiar about that finger?" +</p> +<p> +"Nothing is stated to that effect in the written +description," replied the coroner. +</p> +<p> +"Perhaps," suggested Pope, "Inspector Badger can +tell us." +</p> +<p> +"I think," said the coroner, "we had better not ask +the police too many questions. They will tell us anything +that they wish to be made public." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, very well," snapped the cobbler. "If it's a +matter of hushing it up I've got no more to say; only I +don't see how we are to arrive at a verdict if we don't +have the facts put before us." +</p> +<p> +All the witnesses having now been examined, the +coroner proceeded to sum up and address the +jury. +</p> +<p> +"You have heard the evidence, gentlemen, of the +various witnesses, and you will have perceived that it +does not enable us to answer either of the questions +that form the subject of this inquiry. We now know +that the deceased was an elderly man, about sixty years +of age, and about five feet eight or nine in height; and +that his death took place from eighteen months to two +years ago. That is all we know. From the treatment +to which the body has been subjected we may form +certain conjectures as to the circumstances of his +death. But we have no actual knowledge. We do not +know who the deceased was or how he came by his +death. Consequently, it will be necessary to adjourn +this inquiry until fresh facts are available, and as soon +as that is the case, you will receive due notice that +your attendance is required." +</p> +<p> +The silence of the Court gave place to the confused +noise of moving chairs and a general outbreak of eager +talk, amidst which I rose and made my way out into +the street. At the door I encountered Dr. Summers, +whose dog-cart was waiting close by. +</p> +<p> +"Are you going back to town now?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I answered; "as soon as I can catch a +train." +</p> +<p> +"If you jump into my cart I'll run you down in +time for the five-one. You'll miss it if you walk." +</p> +<p> +I accepted his offer thankfully, and a minute later +was spinning briskly down the road to the station. +</p> +<p> +"Queer little devil, that man, Pope," Dr. Summers +remarked. "Quite a character; socialist, labourite, +agitator, general crank; anything for a row." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I answered, "that was what his appearance +suggested. It must be trying for the coroner to get a +truculent rascal like that on a jury." +</p> +<p> +Summers laughed. "I don't know. He supplies the +comic relief. And then, you know, those fellows have +their uses. Some of his questions were pretty pertinent." +</p> +<p> +"So Badger seemed to think." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, by Jove," chuckled Summers, "Badger didn't +like him a bit; and I suspect the worthy inspector was +sailing pretty close to the wind in his answers." +</p> +<p> +"You think he really has some private information?" +</p> +<p> +"Depends upon what you mean by 'information.' +The police are not a speculative body. They wouldn't +be taking all this trouble unless they had a pretty +straight tip from somebody. How are Mr. and Miss +Bellingham? I used to know them slightly when they +lived here." +</p> +<p> +I was considering a discreet answer to this question +when we swept into the station yard. At the same +moment the train drew up at the platform, and, with +a hurried hand-shake and hastily spoken thanks, I +sprang from the dog-cart and darted into the station. +</p> +<p> +During the rather slow journey homewards I read +over my notes and endeavoured to extract from the +facts they set forth some significance other than that +which lay on the surface, but without much success. +Then I fell to speculating on what Thorndyke would +think of the evidence at the inquest and whether he +would be satisfied with the information that I had +collected. These speculations lasted me, with occasional +digressions, until I arrived at the Temple and +ran up the stairs rather eagerly to my friend's +chambers. +</p> +<p> +But here a disappointment awaited me. The nest +was empty with the exception of Polton, who appeared +at the laboratory door in his white apron, with a pair +of flat-nosed pliers in his hand. +</p> +<p> +"The Doctor has had to go down to Bristol to consult +over an urgent case," he explained, "and Doctor +Jervis has gone with him. They'll be away a day or +two, I expect, but the Doctor left this note for you." +</p> +<p> +He took a letter from a shelf, where it had been stood +conspicuously on edge, and handed it to me. It was +a short note from Thorndyke apologising for his sudden +departure and asking me to give Polton my notes with +any comments that I had to make. +</p> +<p> +"You will be interested to learn," he added, "that +the application will be heard in the Probate Court the +day after to-morrow. I shall not be present, of course, +nor will Jervis, so I should like you to attend and keep +your eyes open for anything that may happen during +the hearing and that may not appear in the notes that +Marchmont's clerk will be instructed to take. I have +retained Dr. Payne to stand by and help you with the +practice, so that you can attend the Court with a clear +conscience." +</p> +<p> +This was highly flattering and quite atoned for the +small disappointment; with deep gratification at the +trust that Thorndyke had reposed in me, I pocketed +the letter, handed my notes to Polton, wished him +"Good evening," and betook myself to Fetter Lane. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH14"><!-- CH14 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XIV +</h2> + +<h3> +WHICH CARRIES THE READER INTO THE PROBATE COURT +</h3> +<p> +The Probate Court wore an air of studious repose +when I entered with Miss Bellingham and her father. +Apparently the great and inquisitive public had not +become aware of the proceedings that were about to +take place, or had not realised their connection with +the sensational "Mutilation Case"; but barristers and +Press-men, better informed, had gathered in some +strength, and the hum of their conversation filled the +air like the droning of the voluntary that ushers in a +cathedral service. +</p> +<p> +As we entered, a pleasant-faced, elderly gentleman +rose and came forward to meet us, shaking Mr. Bellingham's +hand cordially and saluting Miss Bellingham +with a courtly bow. +</p> +<p> +"This is Mr. Marchmont, Doctor," said the former, +introducing me; and the solicitor, having thanked me +for the trouble I had taken in attending at the inquest, +led us to a bench, at the farther end of which was +seated a gentleman whom I recognised as Mr. Hurst. +</p> +<p> +Mr. Bellingham recognised him at the same moment +and glared at him wrathfully. +</p> +<p> +"I see that scoundrel is here!" he exclaimed in a +distinctly audible voice, "pretending that he doesn't +see me, because he is ashamed to look me in the face, +but—" +</p> +<p> +"Hush! hush! my dear sir," exclaimed the horrified +solicitor; "we mustn't talk like that, especially +in this place. Let me beg you—let me entreat you to +control your feelings, to make no indiscreet remarks; +in fact, to make no remarks at all," he added, with the +evident conviction that any remarks that Mr. Bellingham +might make would be certain to be indiscreet. +</p> +<p> +"Forgive me, Marchmont," Mr. Bellingham replied +contritely. "I will control myself; I will really be +quite discreet. I won't even look at him again—because, +if I do, I shall probably go over and pull his +nose." +</p> +<p> +This particular form of discretion did not appear to +be quite to Mr. Marchmont's liking, for he took the +precaution of insisting that Miss Bellingham and I +should sit on the farther side of his client, and thus +effectually separate him from his enemy. +</p> +<p> +"Who's the long-nosed fellow talking to Jellicoe?" +Mr. Bellingham asked. +</p> +<p> +"That is Mr. Loram, K.C., Mr. Hurst's counsel; and +the convivial-looking gentleman next to him is our +counsel, Mr. Heath, a most able man and"—here Mr. +Marchmont whispered behind his hand—"fully instructed +by Doctor Thorndyke." +</p> +<p> +At this juncture the judge entered and took his +seat; the usher proceeded with great rapidity to swear +in the jury, and the Court gradually settled down into +that state of academic quiet which it maintained +throughout the proceedings, excepting when the noisy +swing-doors were set oscillating by some bustling clerk +or reporter. +</p> +<p> +The judge was a somewhat singular-looking old gentleman, +very short as to his face and very long as to +his mouth; which peculiarities, together with a pair +of large and bulging eyes (which he usually kept +closed), suggested a certain resemblance to a frog. +And he had a curious frog-like trick of flattening his +eyelids—as if in the act of swallowing a large beetle—which +was the only outward and visible sign of emotion +that he ever displayed. +</p> +<p> +As soon as the swearing-in of the jury was completed +Mr. Loram rose to introduce the case; whereupon his +lordship leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, +as if bracing himself for a painful operation. +</p> +<p> +"The present proceedings," Mr. Loram explained, +"are occasioned by the unaccountable disappearance +of Mr. John Bellingham, of 141 Queen Square, Bloomsbury, +which occurred about two years ago, or, to be +more precise, on the twenty-third of November, nineteen +hundred and two. Since that date nothing has +been heard of Mr. Bellingham, and, as there are certain +substantial reasons for believing him to be dead, the +principal beneficiary under his will, Mr. George Hurst, +is now applying to the Court for permission to presume +the death of the testator and prove the will. As the +time which has elapsed since the testator was last seen +alive is only two years, the application is based upon +the circumstances of the disappearance, which were, in +many respects, very singular, the most remarkable +feature of that disappearance being, perhaps, its suddenness +and completeness." +</p> +<p> +Here the judge remarked in a still, small voice that +"It would, perhaps, have been even more remarkable +if the testator had disappeared gradually and incompletely." +</p> +<p> +"No doubt, my Lord," agreed Mr. Loram; "but the +point is that the testator, whose habits had always been +regular and orderly, disappeared on the date mentioned +without having made any of the usual provisions +for the conduct of his affairs, and has not since then +been seen or heard of." +</p> +<p> +With this preamble Mr. Loram proceeded to give a +narrative of the events connected with the disappearance +of John Bellingham, which was substantially +identical with that which I had read in the newspapers; +and having laid the actual facts before the jury, he +went on to discuss their probable import. +</p> +<p> +"Now, what conclusion," he asked, "will this +strange, this most mysterious train of events suggest +to an intelligent person who shall consider it impartially? +Here is a man who steps forth from the house +of his cousin or his brother, as the case may be, and +forthwith, in the twinkling of an eye, vanishes from +human ken. What is the explanation? Did he steal +forth and, without notice or hint of his intention, take +train to some seaport, thence to embark for some distant +land, leaving his affairs to take care of themselves +and his friends to speculate vainly as to his whereabouts? +Is he now in hiding abroad, or even at home, +indifferent alike to the safety of his own considerable +property and the peace of mind of his friends? Or is +it that death has come upon him unawares by sickness, +by accident, or, more probably, by the hand of some +unknown criminal? Let us consider the probabilities. +</p> +<p> +"Can he have disappeared by his own deliberate act? +Why not? it may be asked. Men undoubtedly do +disappear from time to time, to be discovered by +chance or to reappear voluntarily after intervals of +years and find their names almost forgotten and their +places filled by new-comers. Yes; but there is always +some reason for a disappearance of this kind, even +though it be a bad one. Family discords that make +life a weariness; pecuniary difficulties that make life +a succession of anxieties; distaste for particular circumstances +and surroundings from which there seems +no escape; inherent restlessness and vagabond tendencies, +and so on. +</p> +<p> +"Do any of these explanations apply to the present +case? No, they do not. Family discords—at least +those capable of producing chronic misery—appertain +exclusively to the married state. But the testator was +a bachelor with no encumbrances whatever. Pecuniary +anxieties can be equally excluded. The testator was in +easy, in fact, in affluent circumstances. His mode of +life was apparently agreeable and full of interest and +activity, and he had full liberty to change it if he +wished. He had been accustomed to travel, and could +do so again without absconding. He had reached an +age when radical changes do not seem desirable. He +was a man of fixed and regular habits, and his regularity +was of his own choice and not due to compulsion +or necessity. When last seen by his friends, as I shall +prove, he was proceeding to a definite destination with +the expressed intention of returning for purposes of his +own appointing. He did return and then vanished, +leaving those purposes unachieved. +</p> +<p> +"If we conclude that he has voluntarily disappeared +and is at present in hiding, we adopt an opinion that is +entirely at variance with all these weighty facts. If, +on the other hand, we conclude that he has died suddenly, +or has been killed by an accident or otherwise, +we are adopting a view that involves no inherent improbabilities +and that is entirely congruous with the +known facts; facts that will be proved by the testimony +of the witnesses whom I shall call. The supposition +that the testator is dead is not only more probable +than that he is alive; I submit that it is the only reasonable +explanation of the circumstances of his disappearance. +</p> +<p> +"But this is not all. The presumption of death +which arises so inevitably out of the mysterious and +abrupt manner in which the testator disappeared has +recently received most conclusive and dreadful confirmation. +On the fifteenth of July last there were +discovered at Sidcup the remains of a human arm—a +left arm, gentlemen, from the hand of which the +third, or ring, finger was missing. The doctor who has +examined that arm will tell you that that finger was +cut off either after death or immediately before; and +his evidence will prove conclusively that that arm must +have been deposited in the place where it was found +just about the time when the testator disappeared. +Since that first discovery, other portions of the same +mutilated body have come to light; and it is a strange +and significant fact that they have all been found in +the immediate neighbourhood of Eltham or Woodford. +You will remember, gentlemen, that it was either at +Eltham or Woodford that the testator was last seen +alive. +</p> +<p> +"And now observe the completeness of the coincidence. +These human remains, as you will be told +presently by the experienced and learned medical gentleman +who has examined them most exhaustively, are +those of a man of about sixty years of age, about +five feet eight inches in height, fairly muscular and +well preserved, apparently healthy, and rather stoutly +built. Another witness will tell you that the missing +man was about sixty years of age, about five feet eight +inches in height, fairly muscular and well preserved, +apparently healthy, and rather stoutly built. And—another +most significant and striking fact—the testator +was accustomed to wear upon the third finger of his +left hand—the very finger that is missing from the +remains that were found—a most peculiar ring, which +fitted so tightly that he was unable to get it off after +once putting it on; a ring, gentlemen, of so peculiar a +pattern that had it been found on the body must have +instantly established the identity of the remains. In a +word, gentlemen, the remains which have been found +are those of a man exactly like the testator; they differ +from him in no respect whatever; they display a mutilation +which suggests an attempt to conceal an identifying +peculiarity which he undoubtedly presented; and +they were deposited in their various hiding-places about +the time of the testator's disappearance. Accordingly, +when you have heard these facts proved by the sworn +testimony of competent witnesses, together with the +facts relating to the disappearance, I shall ask you for +a verdict in accordance with that evidence." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram sat down, and adjusting a pair of pince-nez, +rapidly glanced over his brief while the usher was +administering the oath to the first witness. +</p> +<p> +This was Mr. Jellicoe, who stepped into the box and +directed a stony gaze at the (apparently) unconscious +judge. The usual preliminaries having been gone +through, Mr. Loram proceeded to examine him. +</p> +<p> +"You were the testator's solicitor and confidential +agent, I believe?" +</p> +<p> +"I was—and am." +</p> +<p> +"How long have you known him?" +</p> +<p> +"Twenty-seven years." +</p> +<p> +"Judging from your experience of him, should you +say that he was a person likely to disappear voluntarily +and suddenly to cease to communicate with his +friends?" +</p> +<p> +"No." +</p> +<p> +"Kindly give your reasons for that opinion." +</p> +<p> +"Such conduct on the part of the testator would be +entirely opposed to his habits and character as they +are known to me. He was exceedingly regular and +business-like in his dealings with me. When travelling +abroad he always kept me informed as to his whereabouts, +or, if he was likely to be beyond reach of communications, +he always advised me beforehand. One +of my duties was to collect a pension which he drew +from the Foreign Office, and on no occasion, previous +to his disappearance, has he ever failed to furnish me +punctually with the necessary documents." +</p> +<p> +"Had he, so far as you know, any reasons for wishing +to disappear?" +</p> +<p> +"No." +</p> +<p> +"When and where did you last see him alive?" +</p> +<p> +"At six o'clock in the evening, on the fourteenth of +October, nineteen hundred and two, at 141 Queen +Square, Bloomsbury." +</p> +<p> +"Kindly tell us what happened on that occasion." +</p> +<p> +"The testator had called for me at my office at a +quarter past three, and asked me to come with him to +his house to meet Doctor Norbury. I accompanied +him to 141 Queen Square, and shortly after we arrived +Doctor Norbury came to look at some antiquities that +the testator proposed to give to the British Museum. +The gift consisted of a mummy with the four Canopic +jars and other tomb-furniture, which the testator +stipulated should be exhibited together in a single case +and in the state in which they were then presented. +Of these objects, the mummy only was ready for inspection. +The tomb-furniture had not yet arrived in +England, but was expected within a week. Doctor +Norbury accepted the gift on behalf of the Museum, +but could not take possession of the objects until he +had communicated with the Director and obtained his +formal authority. The testator accordingly gave me +certain instructions concerning the delivery of the gift, +as he was leaving England that evening." +</p> +<p> +"Are those instructions relevant to the subject of +this inquiry?" +</p> +<p> +"I think they are. The testator was going to Paris, +and perhaps from thence to Vienna. He instructed +me to receive and unpack the tomb-furniture on its +arrival, and to store it, with the mummy, in a particular +room, where it was to remain for three weeks. +If he returned within that time he was to hand it over +in person to the Museum authorities; if he had not returned +within that time, he desired me to notify the +Museum authorities that they were at liberty to take +possession of and remove the collection at their convenience. +From these instructions I gathered that the +testator was uncertain as to the length of his absence +from England and the extent of his journey." +</p> +<p> +"Did he state precisely where he was going?" +</p> +<p> +"No. He said that he was going to Paris and perhaps +to Vienna, but he gave no particulars and I asked +for none." +</p> +<p> +"Do you, in fact, know where he went?" +</p> +<p> +"No. He left the house at six o'clock wearing a long, +heavy overcoat and carrying a suit-case and an umbrella. +I wished him 'Good-bye' at the door and +watched him walk away as if going towards Southampton +Row. I have no idea where he went, and I +never saw him again." +</p> +<p> +"Had he no other luggage than the suit-case?" +</p> +<p> +"I do not know, but I believe not. He was accustomed +to travel with the bare necessaries, and to buy +anything further that he wanted <i>en route</i>." +</p> +<p> +"Did he say nothing to the servants as to the probable +date of his return?" +</p> +<p> +"There were no servants excepting the caretaker. +The house was not used for residential purposes. The +testator slept and took his meals at his club, though +he kept his clothes at the house." +</p> +<p> +"Did you receive any communication from him after +he left?" +</p> +<p> +"No. I never heard from him again in any way. I +waited for three weeks as he had instructed me, and +then notified the Museum authorities that the collection +was ready for removal. Five days later Doctor +Norbury came and took formal possession of it, and it +was transferred to the Museum forthwith." +</p> +<p> +"When did you next hear of the testator?" +</p> +<p> +"On the twenty-third of November following at a +quarter past seven in the evening. Mr. George Hurst +came to my rooms, which are over my office, and informed +me that the testator had called at his house +during his absence and had been shown into the study +to wait for him. That on his—Mr. Hurst's—arrival it +was found that the testator had disappeared without +acquainting the servants with his intended departure, +and without being seen by anyone to leave the house. +Mr. Hurst thought this so remarkable that he had +hastened up to town to inform me. I also thought it a +remarkable circumstance, especially as I had received +no communication from the testator, and we both decided +that it was advisable to inform the testator's +brother, Godfrey, of what had happened. +</p> +<p> +"Accordingly Mr. Hurst and I proceeded as quickly +as possible to Liverpool Street and took the first train +available to Woodford, where Mr. Godfrey Bellingham +then resided. We arrived at his house at five minutes +to nine, and were informed by the servant that he was +not at home, but that his daughter was in the library, +which was a detached building situated in the grounds. +The servant lighted a lantern and conducted us through +the grounds to the library, where we found Mr. Godfrey +Bellingham and Miss Bellingham. Mr. Godfrey had +only just come in and had entered by the back gate, +which had a bell that rang in the library. Mr. Hurst +informed Mr. Godfrey of what had occurred, and then +we all left the library to walk up to the house. A few +paces from the library I noticed by the light of the +lantern, which Mr. Godfrey was carrying, a small object +lying on the lawn. I pointed it out to him and he +picked it up, and then we all recognised it as a scarab +that the testator was accustomed to wear on his watch-chain. +It was fitted with a gold wire passed through +the suspension hole and a gold ring. Both the wire and +the ring were in position, but the ring was broken. +We went to the house and questioned the servants as +to visitors; but none of them had seen the testator, +and they all agreed that no visitor whatsoever had +come to the house during the afternoon, or evening. +Mr. Godfrey and Miss Bellingham both declared that +they had neither seen nor heard anything of the +testator, and were both unaware that he had returned +to England. As the circumstances were somewhat disquieting, +I communicated, on the following morning, +with the police and requested them to make inquiries; +which they did, with the result that a suit-case, bearing +the initials 'J.B.', was found to be lying unclaimed in +the cloak-room at Charing Cross Station. I was able +to identify the suit-case as that which I had seen the +testator carry away from Queen Square. I was also +able to identify some of the contents. I interviewed +the cloak-room attendant, who informed me that the +suit-case had been deposited on the twenty-third at +about 4.15 P.M. He had no recollection of the person +who deposited it. It remained unclaimed in the possession +of the railway company for three months, and +was then surrendered to me." +</p> +<p> +"Were there any marks or labels on it showing the +route by which it had travelled?" +</p> +<p> +"There were no labels on it and no marks other +than the initials 'J.B.'" +</p> +<p> +"Do you happen to know the testator's age?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. He was fifty-nine on the eleventh of October, +nineteen hundred and two." +</p> +<p> +"Can you tell us what his height was?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. He was exactly five feet eight inches." +</p> +<p> +"What sort of health had he?" +</p> +<p> +"So far as I know his health was good. I am not +aware that he suffered from any disease. I am only +judging by his appearance, which was that of a healthy +man." +</p> +<p> +"Should you describe him as well preserved or otherwise?" +</p> +<p> +"I should describe him as a well-preserved man for +his age." +</p> +<p> +"How should you describe his figure?" +</p> +<p> +"I should describe him as rather broad and stout +in build, and fairly muscular, though not exceptionally +so." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram made a rapid note of these answers, and +then said: +</p> +<p> +"You have told us, Mr. Jellicoe, that you have known +the testator intimately for twenty-seven years. Now, +did you ever notice whether he was accustomed to +wear any rings upon his fingers?" +</p> +<p> +"He wore upon the third finger of his left hand a +copy of an antique ring which bore the device of the +Eye of Osiris. That was the only ring he ever wore as +far as I know." +</p> +<p> +"Did he wear it constantly?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, necessarily; because it was too small for him, +and having once squeezed it on he was never able to +get it off again." +</p> +<p> +This was the sum of Mr. Jellicoe's evidence, and at +its conclusion the witness glanced inquiringly at Mr. +Bellingham's counsel. But Mr. Heath remained seated, +attentively considering the notes that he had just made, +and finding that there was to be no cross-examination, +Mr. Jellicoe stepped down from the box. I leaned back +on my bench, and, turning my head, observed Miss +Bellingham deep in thought. +</p> +<p> +"What do you think of it?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"It seems very complete and conclusive," she replied. +And then, with a sigh, she murmured: "Poor +old Uncle John! How horrid it sounds to talk of him +in this cold-blooded, business-like way, as 'the testator,' +as if he were nothing but a sort of algebraical sign." +</p> +<p> +"There isn't much room for sentiment, I suppose, +in the proceedings of the Probate Court," I replied. +To which she assented, and then asked: "Who is this +lady?" +</p> +<p> +"This lady" was a fashionably dressed young woman +who had just bounced into the witness-box and was +now being sworn. The preliminaries being finished, +she answered Miss Bellingham's question and Mr. +Loram's by stating that her name was Augustina +Gwendoline Dobbs, and that she was housemaid to Mr. +George Hurst, of "The Poplars," Eltham. +</p> +<p> +"Mr. Hurst lives alone, I believe?" said Mr. Loram. +</p> +<p> +"I don't know what you mean by that," Miss Dobbs +began; but the barrister explained: +</p> +<p> +"I mean that I believe he is unmarried?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, and what about it?" the witness demanded +tartly. +</p> +<p> +"I am asking you a question." +</p> +<p> +"I know that," said the witness viciously; "and I +say that you've no business to make any such insinuations +to a respectable young lady when there's a cook-housekeeper +and a kitchenmaid living in the house, +and him old enough to be my father——" +</p> +<p> +Here his lordship flattened his eyelids with startling +effect, and Mr. Loram interrupted: "I make no insinuations. +I merely ask, Is your employer, Mr. Hurst, +an unmarried man, or is he not?" +</p> +<p> +"I never asked him," said the witness sulkily. +</p> +<p> +"Please answer my question—yes or no?" +</p> +<p> +"How can I answer your question? He may be +unmarried or he may not. How do I know? I'm not a +private detective." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram directed a stupefied gaze at the witness, +and in the ensuing silence a plaintive voice came from +the bench: +</p> +<p> +"Is the point material?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly, my lord," replied Mr. Loram. +</p> +<p> +"Then, as I see that you are calling Mr. Hurst, perhaps +you had better put the question to him. He will +probably know." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram bowed, and as the judge subsided into +his normal state of coma he turned to the triumphant +witness. +</p> +<p> +"Do you remember anything remarkable occurring +on the twenty-third of November the year before last?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. Mr. John Bellingham called at our house." +</p> +<p> +"How did you know he was Mr. John Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"I didn't; but he said he was, and I supposed he +knew." +</p> +<p> +"At what time did he arrive?" +</p> +<p> +"At twenty minutes past five in the evening." +</p> +<p> +"What happened then?" +</p> +<p> +"I told him that Mr. Hurst had not come home yet, +and he said he would wait for him in the study and +write some letters; so I showed him into the study and +shut the door." +</p> +<p> +"What happened next?" +</p> +<p> +"Nothing. Then Mr. Hurst came home at his usual +time—a quarter to six—and let himself in with his +key. He went straight through into the study, where +I supposed Mr. Bellingham still was, so I took no +notice, but laid the table for two. At six o'clock Mr. +Hurst came into the dining-room—he has tea in the +City and dines at six—and when he saw the table laid +for two he asked the reason. I said I thought Mr. +Bellingham was staying to dinner. +</p> +<p> +"'Mr. Bellingham!' says he. 'I didn't know he was +here. Why didn't you tell me?' he says. 'I thought +he was with you, sir,' I said. 'I showed him into the +study,' I said. 'Well, he wasn't there when I came +in,' he said, 'and he isn't there now,' he said. 'Perhaps +he has gone to wait in the drawing-room,' he said. +So we went and looked in the drawing-room, but he +wasn't there. Then Mr. Hurst said he thought Mr. +Bellingham must have got tired of waiting and gone +away; but I told him I was quite sure he hadn't, because +I had been watching all the time. Then he asked +me if Mr. Bellingham was alone or whether his daughter +was with him, and I said that it wasn't that Mr. Bellingham +at all, but Mr. John Bellingham, and then +he was more surprised than ever. I said we had better +search the house to make sure whether he was there or +not, and Mr. Hurst said he would come with me; so we +went all over the house and looked in all the rooms, but +there was not a sign of Mr. Bellingham in any of them. +Then Mr. Hurst got very nervous and upset, and when +he had just snatched a little dinner he ran off to catch +the six-thirty train up to town." +</p> +<p> +"You say that Mr. Bellingham could not have left +the house because you were watching all the time. +Where were you while you were watching?" +</p> +<p> +"I was in the kitchen. I could see the front gate +from the kitchen window." +</p> +<p> +"You say that you laid the table for two. Where +did you lay it?" +</p> +<p> +"In the dining-room, of course." +</p> +<p> +"Could you see the front gate from the dining-room?" +</p> +<p> +"No, but I could see the study door. The study is +opposite the dining-room." +</p> +<p> +"Do you have to come upstairs to get from the +kitchen to the dining-room?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course you do!" +</p> +<p> +"Then might not Mr. Bellingham have left the house +while you were coming up the stairs?" +</p> +<p> +"No, he couldn't have done." +</p> +<p> +"Why not?" +</p> +<p> +"Because it would have been impossible." +</p> +<p> +"But why would it have been impossible?" +</p> +<p> +"Because he couldn't have done it." +</p> +<p> +"I suggest that Mr. Bellingham left the house quietly +while you were on the stairs?" +</p> +<p> +"No, he didn't." +</p> +<p> +"How do you know he did not?" +</p> +<p> +"I am quite sure he didn't." +</p> +<p> +"What makes you feel sure he did not?" +</p> +<p> +"I am quite certain he didn't." +</p> +<p> +"But how can you be certain?" +</p> +<p> +"Because I should have seen him if he had." +</p> +<p> +"But I mean when you were on the stairs." +</p> +<p> +"He was in the study when I was on the stairs." +</p> +<p> +"How do you know he was in the study?" +</p> +<p> +"Because I showed him in there and he hadn't come +out." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram paused and took a deep breath, and his +lordship flattened his eyelids. +</p> +<p> +"Is there a side gate to the premises?" the barrister +resumed wearily. +</p> +<p> +"Yes. It opens into a narrow lane at the side of +the house." +</p> +<p> +"And there is a French window in the study, is there +not?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes; it opens on to the small grass plot opposite +the side gate." +</p> +<p> +"Were the window and the gate locked, or would +it have been possible for Mr. Bellingham to let himself +out into the lane?" +</p> +<p> +"The window and the gate both have catches on the +inside. He could have got out that way, but, of course, +he didn't." +</p> +<p> +"Why not?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, no gentleman would go creeping out by the +back way like a thief." +</p> +<p> +"Did you look to see if the French window was shut +and fastened after you missed Mr. Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"I looked at it when we shut the house up for the +night. It was then shut and fastened on the inside." +</p> +<p> +"And the side gate?" +</p> +<p> +"That was shut and latched. You have to slam +the gate to make the latch fasten, so no one could have +gone out of that gate without being heard." +</p> +<p> +Here the examination-in-chief ended, and Mr. Loram +sat down with an audible sigh of relief. Miss Dobbs +was about to step down from the witness-box when Mr. +Heath rose to cross-examine. +</p> +<p> +"Did you see Mr. Bellingham in a good light?" he +asked. +</p> +<p> +"Pretty good. It was dark outside, but the hall-lamp +was alight." +</p> +<p> +"Kindly look at this"—here a small object was +passed across to the witness. "It is a trinket that Mr. +Bellingham is stated to have carried suspended from +his watch-guard. Can you remember if he was wearing +it in that manner when he came to the house?" +</p> +<p> +"No, he was not." +</p> +<p> +"You are sure of that?" +</p> +<p> +"Quite sure." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you. And now I want to ask you about +the search that you have mentioned. You say that +you went all over the house. Did you go into the +study?" +</p> +<p> +"No—at least, not until Mr. Hurst had gone to +London." +</p> +<p> +"When you did go in, was the window fastened?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes." +</p> +<p> +"Could it have been fastened from the outside?" +</p> +<p> +"No; there is no handle outside." +</p> +<p> +"What furniture is there in the study?" +</p> +<p> +"There is a writing-table, a revolving-chair, two easy +chairs, two large bookcases, and a wardrobe that Mr. +Hurst keeps his overcoats and hats in." +</p> +<p> +"Does the wardrobe lock?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes." +</p> +<p> +"Was it locked when you went in?" +</p> +<p> +"I'm sure I don't know. I don't go about trying +the cupboards and drawers." +</p> +<p> +"What furniture is there in the drawing-room?" +</p> +<p> +"A cabinet, six or seven chairs, a Chesterfield sofa, +a piano, a silver-table, and one or two occasional +tables." +</p> +<p> +"Is the piano a grand or an upright." +</p> +<p> +"It is an upright grand." +</p> +<p> +"In what position is it placed?" +</p> +<p> +"It stands across a corner near the window." +</p> +<p> +"Is there sufficient room behind it for a man to +conceal himself?" +</p> +<p> +Miss Dobbs was amused and did not dissemble. +"Oh, yes," she sniggered, "there's plenty of room for +a man to hide behind it." +</p> +<p> +"When you searched the drawing-room, did you look +behind the piano?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I didn't!" Miss Dobbs replied scornfully. +</p> +<p> +"Did you look under the sofa?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly not!" +</p> +<p> +"What did you do, then?" +</p> +<p> +"We opened the door and looked into the room. +We were not looking for a cat or a monkey; we were +looking for a middle-aged gentleman." +</p> +<p> +"And am I to take it that your search over the rest +of the house was conducted in a similar manner?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly. We looked into the rooms, but we did +not search under the beds or in the cupboards." +</p> +<p> +"Are all the rooms in the house in use as living or +sleeping rooms?" +</p> +<p> +"No; there is one room on the second floor that is +used as a store and lumber room, and one on the first +floor that Mr. Hurst uses to store trunks and things +that he is not using." +</p> +<p> +"Did you look in those rooms when you searched +the house?" +</p> +<p> +"No." +</p> +<p> +"Have you looked in them since?" +</p> +<p> +"I have been in the lumber-room since, but not in +the other. It is always kept locked." +</p> +<p> +At this point an ominous flattening became apparent +in his lordship's eyelids, but these symptoms passed off +when Mr. Heath sat down and indicated that he had +no further questions to ask. +</p> +<p> +Miss Dobbs once more prepared to step down from +the witness-box, when Mr. Loram shot up like a jack-in-the-box. +</p> +<p> +"You have made certain statements," said he, "concerning +the scarab which Mr. Bellingham was accustomed +to wear suspended from his watch-guard. You +say that he was not wearing it when he came to Mr. +Hurst's house on the twenty-third of November, nineteen +hundred and two. Are you quite sure of +that?" +</p> +<p> +"Quite sure." +</p> +<p> +"I must ask you to be very careful in your statement +on this point. The question is a highly important one. +Do you swear that the scarab was not hanging from +his watch-guard?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I do." +</p> +<p> +"Did you notice the watch-guard particularly?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not particularly." +</p> +<p> +"Then what makes you so sure that the scarab was +not attached to it?" +</p> +<p> +"It couldn't have been." +</p> +<p> +"Why could it not?" +</p> +<p> +"Because if it had been there I should have seen it." +</p> +<p> +"What kind of a watch-guard was Mr. Bellingham +wearing?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, an ordinary sort of watch-guard." +</p> +<p> +"I mean, was it a chain or a ribbon or a strap?" +</p> +<p> +"A chain, I think—or perhaps a ribbon—or it might +have been a strap." +</p> +<p> +His lordship flattened his eyelids, but made no further +sign, and Mr. Loram continued: +</p> +<p> +"Did you or did you not notice what kind of watch-guard +Mr. Bellingham was wearing?" +</p> +<p> +"I did not. Why should I? It was no business of +mine." +</p> +<p> +"But yet you are sure about the scarab?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, quite sure." +</p> +<p> +"You noticed that, then?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I didn't. How could I when it wasn't there?" +</p> +<p> +Mr. Loram paused and looked helplessly at the witness; +a suppressed titter arose from the body of the +Court, and a faint voice from the bench inquired: +</p> +<p> +"Are you <i>quite</i> incapable of giving a straightforward +answer?" +</p> +<p> +Miss Dobbs' only reply was to burst into tears; +whereupon Mr. Loram abruptly sat down and abandoned +his re-examination. +</p> +<p> +The witness-box vacated by Miss Dobbs was occupied +successively by Dr. Norbury, Mr. Hurst, and the +cloak-room attendant, none of whom contributed any +new facts, but merely corroborated the statements +made by Mr. Jellicoe and the housemaid. Then came +the labourer who discovered the bones at Sidcup, and +who repeated the evidence that he had given at the +inquest, showing that the remains could not have been +lying in the watercress-bed more than two years. +Finally Dr. Summers was called, and, after he had given +a brief description of the bones that he had examined, +was asked by Mr. Loram: +</p> +<p> +"You have heard the description that Mr. Jellicoe +has given of the testator?" +</p> +<p> +"I have." +</p> +<p> +"Does that description apply to the person whose +remains you examined?" +</p> +<p> +"In a general way, it does." +</p> +<p> +"I must ask you for a direct answer—yes or no. +Does it apply?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. But I ought to say that my estimate of the +height of the deceased is only approximate." +</p> +<p> +"Quite so. Judging from your examination of those +remains and from Mr. Jellicoe's description, might those +remains be the remains of the testator, John Bellingham?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, they might." +</p> +<p> +On receiving this admission Mr. Loram sat down, +and Mr. Heath immediately rose to cross-examine. +</p> +<p> +"When you examined these remains, Doctor Summers, +did you discover any personal peculiarities which +would enable you to identify them as the remains of +any one individual rather than any other individual of +similar size, age, and proportions?" +</p> +<p> +"No. I found nothing that would identify the remains +as those of any particular individual." +</p> +<p> +As Mr. Heath asked no further questions, the witness +received his dismissal, and Mr. Loram informed the +Court that that was his case. The judge bowed somnolently, +and then Mr. Heath rose to address the Court +on behalf of the respondent. It was not a long speech, +nor was it enriched by any displays of florid rhetoric; +it concerned itself exclusively with a rebutment of the +arguments of the counsel for the petitioner. +</p> +<p> +Having briefly pointed out that the period of absence +was too short to give rise of itself to the presumption +of death, Mr. Heath continued: +</p> +<p> +"The claim therefore rests upon evidence of a positive +character. My learned friend asserts that the +testator is presumably dead, and it is for him to prove +what he has affirmed. Now, has he done this? I submit +that he has not. He has argued with great force +and ingenuity that the testator, being a bachelor, a +solitary man without wife or child, dependent or master, +public or private office or duty, or any bond, responsibility, +or any other condition limiting his freedom of +action, had no reason or inducement for absconding. +This is my learned friend's argument, and he has conducted +it with so much skill and ingenuity that he has +not only succeeded in proving his case; he has proved +a great deal too much. For if it is true, as my learned +friend so justly argues, that a man thus unfettered by +obligations of any kind has no reason for disappearing, +is it not even more true that he has no reason for <i>not</i> +disappearing? My friend has urged that the testator +was at liberty to go where he pleased, when he pleased, +and how he pleased; and that therefore there was no +need for him to abscond. I reply, if he was at liberty +to go away, whither, when, and how he pleased, why do +we express surprise that he has made use of his liberty? +My learned friend points out that the testator notified +to nobody his intention of going away and has acquainted +no one with his whereabouts; but, I ask, whom +should he have notified? He was responsible to nobody; +there was no one dependent upon him; his presence or +absence was the concern of nobody but himself. If +circumstances suddenly arising made it desirable that he +should go abroad, why should he not go? I say there +was no reason whatever. +</p> +<p> +"My learned friend has said that the testator went +away leaving his affairs to take care of themselves. +Now, gentlemen, I ask you if this can fairly be said of +a man whose affairs are, as they have been for +years, in the hands of a highly capable, completely +trustworthy agent who is better acquainted with them +than the testator himself? Clearly it cannot. +</p> +<p> +"To conclude this part of the argument: I submit +that the circumstances of the so-called disappearance +of the testator present nothing out of the ordinary. +The testator is a man of ample means, without any +responsibilities to fetter his movements and has been +in the constant habit of travelling, often into remote +and distant regions. The mere fact that he has been +absent somewhat longer than usual affords no ground +whatever for the drastic proceeding of presuming his +death and taking possession of his property. +</p> +<p> +"With reference to the human remains which have +been mentioned in connection with the case I need say +but little. The attempt to connect them with the +testator has failed completely. You yourselves have +heard Doctor Summers state on oath that they cannot +be identified as the remains of any particular person. +That would seem to dispose of them effectually. I must +remark upon a very singular point that has been raised +by the learned counsel for the petitioner, which is this: +</p> +<p> +"My learned friend points out that these remains +were discovered near Eltham and near Woodford and +that the testator was last seen alive at one of these +two places. This he considers for some reason to be +a highly significant fact. But I cannot agree with him. +If the testator had been last seen alive at Woodford +and the remains had been found at Woodford, or if he +had disappeared from Eltham and the remains had +been found at Eltham, that would have had some significance. +But he can only have been last seen at one +of the places, whereas the remains have been found at +both places. Here again my learned friend seems to +have proved too much." +</p> +<p> +"But I need not occupy your time further. I repeat +that, in order to justify us in presuming the death of +the testator, clear and positive evidence would be necessary. +That no such evidence has been brought forward. +Accordingly, seeing that the testator may return at +any time and is entitled to find his property intact, I +shall ask you for a verdict that will secure to him this +measure of ordinary justice." +</p> +<p> +At the conclusion of Mr. Heath's speech the judge, +as if awakening from a refreshing nap, opened his eyes; +and uncommonly shrewd, intelligent eyes they were, +when the expressive eyelids were duly tucked up out +of the way. He commenced by reading over a part of +the will and certain notes—which he appeared to have +made in some miraculous fashion with his eyes shut—and +then proceeded to review the evidence and the +counsels' arguments for the instruction of the jury. +</p> +<p> +"Before considering the evidence which you have +heard, gentlemen," he said, "it will be well for me to +say a few words to you on the general legal aspects of +the case which is occupying our attention." +</p> +<p> +"If a person goes abroad or disappears from his +home and his ordinary places of resort and is absent +for a long period of time, the presumption of death +arises at the expiration of seven years from the date +on which he was last heard of. That is to say, that +the total disappearance of an individual for seven years +constitutes presumptive evidence that the said individual +is dead; and the presumption can be set aside +only by the production of evidence that he was alive +at some time within that period of seven years. But +if, on the other hand, it is sought to presume the death +of a person who has been absent for a shorter period +than seven years, it is necessary to produce such evidence +as shall make it highly probable that the said +person is dead. Of course, presumption implies supposition +as opposed to actual demonstration; but, +nevertheless, the evidence in such a case must be of a +kind that tends to create a very strong belief that +death has occurred; and I need hardly say that the +shorter the period of absence, the more convincing must +be the evidence. +</p> +<p> +"In the present case, the testator, John Bellingham, +has been absent somewhat under two years. This is a +relatively short period, and in itself gives rise to no +presumption of death. Nevertheless, death has been +presumed in a case where the period of absence was +even shorter and the insurance recovered; but here +the evidence supporting the belief in the occurrence of +death was exceedingly weighty. +</p> +<p> +"The testator in this case was a shipmaster, and his +disappearance was accompanied by the disappearance +of the ship and the entire ship's company in the course +of a voyage from London to Marseilles. The loss of +the ship and her crew was the only reasonable explanation +of the disappearance, and, short of actual demonstration, +the facts offered convincing evidence of the +death of all persons on board. I mention this case as +an illustration. You are not dealing with speculative +probabilities. You are contemplating a very momentous +proceeding, and you must be very sure of your +ground. Consider what it is that you are asked to do. +</p> +<p> +"The petitioner asks permission to presume the +death of the testator in order that the testator's property +may be distributed among the beneficiaries under +the will. The granting of such permission involves us in +the gravest responsibility. An ill-considered decision +might be productive of a serious injustice to the testator, +an injustice that could never be remedied. Hence +it is incumbent upon you to weigh the evidence with the +greatest care, to come to no decision without the profoundest +consideration of all the facts. +</p> +<p> +"The evidence that you have heard divides itself into +two parts—that relating to the circumstances of the +testator's disappearance, and that relating to certain +human remains. In connection with the latter I can +only express my surprise and regret that the application +was not postponed until the completion of the +coroner's inquest, and leave you to consider the evidence. +You will bear in mind that Doctor Summers has stated +explicitly that the remains cannot be identified as those +of any particular individual, but that the testator and +the unknown deceased had so many points of resemblance +that they might possibly be one and the same +person. +</p> +<p> +"With reference to the circumstances of the disappearance, +you have heard the evidence of Mr. Jellicoe +to the effect that the testator has on no previous occasion +gone abroad without informing him as to his proposed +destination. But in considering what weight you +are to give to this statement you will bear in mind +that when the testator set out for Paris after his interview +with Doctor Norbury he left Mr. Jellicoe without +any information as to his specific destination, his address +in Paris, or the precise date when he should +return, and that Mr. Jellicoe was unable to tell us +where the testator went or what was his business. Mr. +Jellicoe was, in fact, for a time without any means of +tracing the testator or ascertaining his whereabouts. +</p> +<p> +"The evidence of the housemaid, Dobbs, and of Mr. +Hurst is rather confusing. It appears that the testator +came to the house, was shown into a certain room, and +when looked for later was not to be found. A search +of the premises showed that he was not in the house, +whence it seems to follow that he must have left it; +but since no one was informed of his intention to leave, +and he had expressed the intention of staying to see +Mr. Hurst, his conduct in thus going away surreptitiously +must appear somewhat eccentric. The point +that you have to consider, therefore, is whether a person +who is capable of thus departing in a surreptitious and +eccentric manner from a house, without giving notice +to the servants, is capable also of departing in a surreptitious +and eccentric manner from his usual places +of resort without giving notice to his friends or thereafter +informing them of his whereabouts. +</p> +<p> +"The questions, then, gentlemen, that you have to +ask yourselves before deciding on your verdict are two: +first, Are the circumstances of the testator's disappearance +and his continued absence incongruous with his +habits and personal peculiarities as they are known to +you? and second, Are there any facts which indicate +in a positive manner that the testator is dead? Ask +yourselves these questions, gentlemen, and the answers +to them, furnished by the evidence that you have heard, +will guide you to your decision." +</p> +<p> +Having delivered himself of the above instructions, +the judge applied himself to the perusal of the will with +professional gusto, in which occupation he was presently +disturbed by the announcement of the foreman +of the jury that a verdict had been agreed upon. +</p> +<p> +The judge sat up and glanced at the jury-box, and +when the foreman proceeded to state that "We find +no sufficient reason for presuming the testator, John +Bellingham, to be dead," he nodded approvingly. Evidently +that was his opinion, too, as he was careful to +explain when he conveyed to Mr. Loram the refusal +of the Court to grant the permission applied for. +</p> +<p> +The decision was a great relief to me, and also, I +think, to Miss Bellingham; but most of all to her +father, who, with instinctive good manners, since he +could not suppress a smile of triumph, rose hastily +and stumped out of the Court, so that the discomfited +Hurst should not see him. His daughter and I followed, +and as we left the Court she remarked, with a +smile: +</p> +<p> +"So our pauperism is not, after all, made absolute. +There is still a chance for us in the Chapter of Accidents—and +perhaps even for poor old Uncle John." +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH15"><!-- CH15 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XV +</h2> + +<h3> +CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE +</h3> +<p> +The morning after the hearing saw me setting forth +on my round in more than usually good spirits. The +round itself was but a short one, for my list contained +only a couple of "chronics," and this, perhaps, contributed +to my cheerful outlook on life. But there were +other reasons. The decision of the Court had come as +an unexpected reprieve and the ruin of my friends' +prospects was at least postponed. Then, I had learned +that Thorndyke was back from Bristol and wished me +to look in on him; and, finally, Miss Bellingham had +agreed to spend this very afternoon with me, browsing +round the galleries at the British Museum. +</p> +<p> +I had disposed of my two patients by a quarter to +eleven, and three minutes later was striding down Mitre +Court, all agog to hear what Thorndyke had to say +with reference to my notes on the inquest. The "oak" +was open when I arrived at his chambers, and a modest +flourish on the little brass knocker of the inner door +was answered by my quondam teacher himself. +</p> +<p> +"How good of you, Berkeley," he said, shaking +hands genially, "to look me up so early. I am all +alone, just looking through the report of the evidence +in yesterday's proceedings." +</p> +<p> +He placed an easy chair for me, and, gathering up a +bundle of type-written papers, laid them aside on the +table. +</p> +<p> +"Were you surprised at the decision?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"No," he answered. "Two years is a short period +of absence; but still, it might easily have gone the other +way. I am greatly relieved. The respite gives us +time to carry out our investigations without undue +hurry." +</p> +<p> +"Did you find my notes of any use?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Heath did. Polton handed them to him, and they +were invaluable to him for his cross-examination. I +haven't seen them yet; in fact, I have only just got +them back from him. Let us go through them together +now." +</p> +<p> +He opened a drawer, and taking from it my note-book, +seated himself, and began to read through my +notes with grave attention, while I stood and looked +shyly over his shoulder. On the page that contained +my sketches of the Sidcup arm, showing the distribution +of the snails' eggs on the bones, he lingered with a +faint smile that made me turn hot and red. +</p> +<p> +"Those sketches look rather footy," I said; "but +I had to put something in my note-book." +</p> +<p> +"You didn't attach any importance, then, to the +facts that they illustrated?" +</p> +<p> +"No. The egg-patches were there, so I noted the +fact. That's all." +</p> +<p> +"I congratulate you, Berkeley. There is not one +man in twenty who would have the sense to make a +careful note of what he considers an unimportant or +irrelevant fact; and the investigator who notes only +those things that appear significant is perfectly useless. +He gives himself no material for reconsideration. But +you don't mean that these egg-patches and worm-tubes +appeared to you to have no significance at all?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, of course, they show the position in which the +bones were lying." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. The arm was lying, fully extended, with +the dorsal side uppermost. There is nothing remarkable +in that. But we also learn from these egg-patches +that the hand had been separated from the arm before +it was thrown into the pond; and there is something +very remarkable in that." +</p> +<p> +I leaned over his shoulder and gazed at my sketches, +amazed at the rapidity with which he had reconstructed +the limb from my rough drawings of the individual +bones. +</p> +<p> +"I don't quite see how you arrived at it, though," +I said. +</p> +<p> +"Well, look at your drawings. The egg-patches +are on the dorsal surface of the scapula, the humerus, +and the bones of the fore-arm. But here you have +shown six of the bones of the hand: two metacarpals, +the os magnum, and three phalanges; and they all have +egg-patches on the <i>palmar</i> surface. Therefore the +hand was lying palm upwards." +</p> +<p> +"But the hand may have been pronated." +</p> +<p> +"If you mean pronated in relation to the arm, that +is impossible, for the position of the egg-patches shows +clearly that the bones of the arm were lying in the +position of supination. Thus the dorsal surface of the +arm and the palmar surface of the hand respectively +were uppermost, which is an anatomical impossibility +so long as the hand is attached to the arm." +</p> +<p> +"But might not the hand have become detached after +lying in the pond some time?" +</p> +<p> +"No. It could not have been detached until the +ligaments had decayed, and if it had been separated +after the decay of the soft parts, the bones would have +been thrown into disorder. But the egg-patches are +all on the palmar surface, showing that the bones were +still in their normal relative positions. No, Berkeley, +that hand was thrown into the pond separately from +the arm." +</p> +<p> +"But why should it have been?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Ah, there is a very pretty little problem for you to +consider. And, meantime, let me tell you that your +expedition has been a brilliant success. You are an +excellent observer. Your only fault is that when you +have noted certain facts you don't seem fully to appreciate +their significance—which is merely a matter of +inexperience. As to the facts that you have collected, +several of them are of prime importance." +</p> +<p> +"I am glad you are satisfied," said I, "though I +don't see that I have discovered much excepting those +snails' eggs; and they don't seem to have advanced +matters very much." +</p> +<p> +"A definite fact, Berkeley, is a definite asset. Perhaps +we may presently find a little space in our Chinese +puzzle which this fact of the detached hand will just +drop into. But, tell me, did you find nothing unexpected +or suggestive about those bones—as to their +number and condition, for instance?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, I thought it a little queer that the scapula +and clavicle should be there. I should have expected +him to cut the arm off at the shoulder-joint." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Thorndyke; "so should I; and so it +has been done in every case of dismemberment that I +am acquainted with. To an ordinary person, the arm +seems to join on to the trunk at the shoulder-joint, +and that is where he would naturally sever it. What +explanation do you suggest of this unusual mode of +severing the arm?" +</p> +<p> +"Do you think the fellow could have been a +butcher?" I asked, remembering Dr. Summers' remark. +"This is the way a shoulder of mutton is taken +off." +</p> +<p> +"No," replied Thorndyke. "A butcher includes the +scapula in a shoulder of mutton for a specific purpose, +namely, to take off a given quantity of meat. And +also, as a sheep has no clavicle, it is the easiest way +to detach the limb. But I imagine a butcher would +find himself in difficulties if he attempted to take off +a man's arm in that way. The clavicle would be a new +and perplexing feature. Then, too, a butcher does not +deal very delicately with his subject; if he has to divide +a joint, he just cuts through it and does not trouble +himself to avoid marking the bones. But you note here +that there is not a single scratch or score on any one +of the bones, not even where the finger was removed. +Now, if you have ever prepared bones for a museum, +as I have, you will remember the extreme care that is +necessary in disarticulating joints to avoid disfiguring +the articular ends of the bones with cuts and scratches." +</p> +<p> +"Then you think that the person who dismembered +this body must have had some anatomical knowledge +and skill?" +</p> +<p> +"That is what has been suggested. The suggestion +is not mine." +</p> +<p> +"Then I infer that you don't agree?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke smiled. "I am sorry to be so cryptic, +Berkeley, but you understand that I can't make statements. +Still, I am trying to lead you to make certain +inferences from the facts that are in your possession." +</p> +<p> +"If I make the right inference, will you tell me?" +I asked. +</p> +<p> +"It won't be necessary," he answered, with the same +quiet smile. "When you have fitted a puzzle together +you don't need to be told that you have done it." +</p> +<p> +It was most infernally tantalising. I pondered on the +problem with a scowl of such intense cogitation that +Thorndyke laughed outright. +</p> +<p> +"It seems to me," I said, at length, "that the identity +of the remains is the primary question and that +is a question of fact. It doesn't seem any use to speculate +about it." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. Either these bones are the remains of +John Bellingham or they are not. There will be no +doubt on the subject when all the bones are assembled—if +ever they are. And the settlement of that question +will probably throw light on the further question: Who +deposited them in the places in which they were found? +But to return to your observations: did you gather +nothing from the other bones? From the complete +state of the neck vertebrae, for instance?" +</p> +<p> +"Well, it did strike me as rather odd that the fellow +should have gone to the trouble of separating the atlas +from the skull. He must have been pretty handy with +the scalpel to have done it as cleanly as he seems to +have done; but I don't see why he should have gone +about the business in the most inconvenient way." +</p> +<p> +"You notice the uniformity of method. He has +separated the head from the spine, instead of cutting +through the spine lower down, as most persons would +have done: he removed the arms with the entire shoulder-girdle, +instead of simply cutting them off at the +shoulder-joints. Even in the thighs the same peculiarity +appears; for in neither case was the knee-cap +found with the thigh-bone, although it seems to have +been searched for. Now the obvious way to divide the +leg is to cut through the patellar ligament, leaving +the knee-cap attached to the thigh. But in this case, +the knee-cap appears to have been left attached to the +shank. Can you explain why this person should have +adopted this unusual and rather inconvenient method? +Can you suggest a motive for this procedure, or can +you think of any circumstances which might lead a +person to adopt this method by preference?" +</p> +<p> +"It seems as if he wished, for some reason, to divide +the body into definite anatomical regions." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke chuckled. "You are not offering that +suggestion as an explanation, are you? Because it +would require more explaining than the original problem. +And it is not even true. Anatomically speaking, +the knee-cap appertains to the thigh rather than to +the shank. It is a sesamoid bone belonging to the thigh +muscles; yet in this case it has been left attached, +apparently, to the shank. No, Berkeley, that cat won't +jump. Our unknown operator was not preparing a +skeleton as a museum specimen; he was dividing a body +up into convenient-sized portions for the purpose of +conveying them to various ponds. Now what circumstances +might have led him to divide it in this peculiar +manner?" +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid I have no suggestion to offer. Have +you?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke suddenly lapsed into ambiguity. "I +think," he said, "it is possible to conceive such circumstances, +and so, probably, will you if you think it +over." +</p> +<p> +"Did you gather anything of importance from the +evidence at the inquest?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"It is difficult to say," he replied. "The whole of +my conclusions in this case are based on what is virtually +circumstantial evidence. I have not one single +fact of which I can say that it admits only of a single +interpretation. Still, it must be remembered that even +the most inconclusive facts, if sufficiently multiplied, +yield a highly conclusive total. And my little pile of +evidence is growing, particle by particle; but we mustn't +sit here gossiping at this hour of the day; I have to +consult with Marchmont and you say that you have +an early afternoon engagement. We can walk together +as far as Fleet Street." +</p> +<p> +A minute or two later we went our respective ways, +Thorndyke towards Lombard Street and I to Fetter +Lane, not unmindful of those coming events that were +casting so agreeable a shadow before them. +</p> +<p> +There was only one message awaiting me, and when +Adolphus had delivered it (amidst mephitic fumes that +rose from the basement, premonitory of fried plaice), I +pocketed my stethoscope and betook myself to Gunpowder +Alley, the aristocratic abode of my patient, +joyfully threading the now familiar passages of Gough +Square and Wine Office Court, and meditating pleasantly +on the curious literary flavour that pervades these +little-known regions. For the shade of the author of +<i>Rasselas</i> still seems to haunt the scenes of his Titanic +labours and his ponderous but homely and temperate +rejoicings. Every court and alley whispers of books +and of the making of books; forms of type, trundled +noisily on trollies by ink-smeared boys, salute the wayfarer +at odd corners; piles of strawboard, rolls or +bales of paper, drums of printing-ink or roller-composition +stand on the pavement outside dark entries; +basement windows give glimpses into Hadean caverns +tenanted by legions of printer's devils; and the very +air is charged with the hum of press and with odours of +glue and paste and oil. The entire neighbourhood is +given up to the printer and binder; and even my patient +turned out to be a guillotine-knife grinder—a ferocious +and revolutionary calling strangely at variance with +his harmless appearance and meek bearing. +</p> +<p> +I was in good time at my tryst, despite the hindrances +of fried plaice and invalid guillotinists; but, early as +I was, Miss Bellingham was already waiting in the +garden—she had been filling a bowl with flowers—ready +to sally forth. +</p> +<p> +"It is quite like old times," she said, as we turned +into Fetter Lane, "to be going to the Museum together. +It brings back the Tell el Amarna tablets and all your +kindness and unselfish labour. I suppose we shall walk +there to-day?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly," I replied; "I am not going to +share your society with the common mortals who +ride in omnibuses. That would be sheer, sinful +waste. Besides, it is more companionable to +walk." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, it is; and the bustle of the streets makes one +more appreciative of the quiet of the Museum. What +are we going to look at when we get there?" +</p> +<p> +"You must decide that," I replied. "You know +the collection much better than I do." +</p> +<p> +"Well, now," she mused, "I wonder what you would +like to see; or, in other words, what I should like you +to see. The old English pottery is rather fascinating, +especially the Fulham ware. I rather think I shall take +you to see that." +</p> +<p> +She reflected awhile, and then, just as we reached +the gate of Staple Inn, she stopped and looked thoughtfully +down the Gray's Inn Road. +</p> +<p> +"You have taken a great interest in our 'case,' as +Doctor Thorndyke calls it. Would you like to see the +churchyard where Uncle John wished to be buried? It +is a little out of our way, but we are not in a hurry, +are we?" +</p> +<p> +I, certainly, was not. Any deviation that might +prolong our walk was welcome, and, as to the place—why, +all places were alike to me if only she were by my +side. Besides, the churchyard was really of some interest, +since it was undoubtedly the "exciting cause" of +the obnoxious paragraph two of the disputed will. I +accordingly expressed a desire to make its acquaintance, +and we crossed to the entrance to Gray's Inn Road. +</p> +<p> +"Do you ever try," she asked, as we turned down +the dingy thoroughfare, "to picture to yourself familiar +places as they looked a couple of hundred years ago?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I answered, "and very difficult I find it. +One has to manufacture the materials for reconstruction, +and then the present aspect of the place will keep +obtruding itself. But some places are easier to reconstitute +than others." +</p> +<p> +"That is what I find," said she. "Now Holborn, +for example, is quite easy to reconstruct, though I +daresay the imaginary form isn't a bit like the original. +But there are fragments left, like Staple Inn and the +front of Gray's Inn; and then one has seen prints of +the old Middle Row and some of the taverns, so that +one has some material with which to help out one's +imagination. But this road that we are walking in +always baffles me. It looks so old and yet is, for the +most part, so new that I find it impossible to make a +satisfactory picture of its appearance, say, when Sir +Roger de Coverley might have strolled in Gray's Inn +Walks, or farther back, when Francis Bacon had +chambers in the Inn." +</p> +<p> +"I imagine," said I, "that part of the difficulty is +in the mixed character of the neighbourhood. Here, +on the one side, is old Gray's Inn, not much changed +since Bacon's time—his chambers are still to be seen, +I think, over the gateway; and there, on the Clerkenwell +side, is a dense and rather squalid neighbourhood +which has grown up over a region partly rural and +wholly fugitive in character. Places like Bagnigge +Wells and Hockley in the Hole would not have had +many buildings that were likely to survive; and in the +absence of surviving specimens the imagination hasn't +much to work from." +</p> +<p> +"I daresay you are right," said she. "Certainly, +the purlieus of old Clerkenwell present a very confused +picture to me; whereas, in the case of an old street +like, say, Great Ormond Street, one has only to sweep +away the modern buildings and replace them with +glorious old houses like the few that remain, dig up the +roadway and pavements and lay down cobble-stones, +plant a few wooden posts, hang up one or two oil-lamps, +and the transformation is complete. And a very delightful +transformation it is." +</p> +<p> +"Very delightful; which, by the way, is a melancholy +thought. For we ought to be doing better work than +our forefathers; whereas what we actually do is to pull +down the old buildings, clap the doorways, porticoes, +panelling, and mantels in our museums, and then run +up something inexpensive and useful and deadly uninteresting +in their place." +</p> +<p> +My companion looked at me and laughed softly. +"For a naturally cheerful, and even gay young man," +said she, "you are most amazingly pessimistic. The +mantle of Jeremiah—if he ever wore one—seems to +have fallen on you, but without in the least impairing +your good spirits excepting in regard to matters architectural." +</p> +<p> +"I have much to be thankful for," said I. "Am I +not taken to the Museum by a fair lady? And does +she not stay me with mummy cases and comfort me +with crockery?" +</p> +<p> +"Pottery," she corrected; and then, as we met a +party of grave-looking women emerging from a side-street, +she said: "I suppose those are lady medical +students." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, on their way to the Royal Free Hospital. +Note the gravity of their demeanour and contrast it +with the levity of the male student." +</p> +<p> +"I was doing so," she answered, "and wondering +why professional women are usually so much more +serious than men." +</p> +<p> +"Perhaps," I suggested, "it is a matter of selection. +A peculiar type of woman is attracted to the professions, +whereas every man has to earn his living as a +matter of course." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I daresay that is the explanation. This is +our turning." +</p> +<p> +We passed into Heathcote Street, at the end of +which was an open gate giving entrance to one of those +disused and metamorphosed burial-grounds that are to +be met with in the older districts of London; in which +the dispossessed dead are jostled into corners to make +room for the living. Many of the headstones were +still standing, and others, displaced to make room for +asphalted walks and seats, were ranged around by the +walls, exhibiting inscriptions made meaningless by their +removal. It was a pleasant enough place on this summer +afternoon, contrasted with the dingy street whence +we had come, though its grass was faded and yellow +and the twitter of the birds in the trees mingled with +the hideous Board-school drawl of the children who +played around the seats and the few remaining tombs. +</p> +<p> +"So this is the last resting-place of the illustrious +house of Bellingham," said I. +</p> +<p> +"Yes; and we are not the only distinguished people +who repose in this place. The daughter of no less a +person than Richard Cromwell is buried here; the tomb +is still standing—but perhaps you have been here before, +and know it." +</p> +<p> +"I don't think I have ever been here before; and +yet there is something about the place that seems +familiar." I looked around, cudgelling my brains for +the key to the dimly reminiscent sensations that the +place evoked; until, suddenly, I caught sight of a group +of buildings away to the west, enclosed within a wall +heightened by a wooden trellis. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, of course!" I exclaimed. "I remember the +place now. I have never been in this part before, but +in that enclosure beyond which opens at the end of +Henrietta Street, there used to be and may be still, for +all I know, a school of anatomy, at which I attended +in my first year; in fact, I did my first dissection +there." +</p> +<p> +"There was a certain gruesome appropriateness in +the position of the school," remarked Miss Bellingham. +"It would have been really convenient in the days of +the resurrection men. Your material would have been +delivered at your very door. Was it a large school?" +</p> +<p> +"The attendance varied according to the time of the +year. Sometimes I worked there quite alone. I used +to let myself in with a key and hoist my subject out +of a sort of sepulchral tank by means of a chain tackle. +It was a ghoulish business. You have no idea how +awful the body used to look, to my unaccustomed eyes, +as it rose slowly out of the tank. It was like the resurrection +scenes that you see on some old tombstones, +where the deceased is shown rising out of his coffin +while the skeleton, Death, falls vanquished with his +dart shattered and his crown toppling off. +</p> +<p> +"I remember, too, that the demonstrator used to +wear a blue apron, which created a sort of impression +of a cannibal butcher's shop. But I am afraid I am +shocking you." +</p> +<p> +"No, you are not. Every profession has its unpresentable +aspects, which ought not to be seen by out-siders. +Think of a sculptor's studio and of the sculptor +himself when he is modelling a large figure or group +in the clay. He might be a bricklayer or a road-sweeper +if you judge by his appearance. This is the +tomb I was telling you about." +</p> +<p> +We halted before the plain coffer of stone, weathered +and wasted by age, but yet kept in decent repair by +some pious hands, and read the inscription, setting +forth with modest pride, that here reposed Anna, sixth +daughter of Richard Cromwell, "The Protector." It +was a simple monument and commonplace enough, with +the crude severity of the ascetic age to which it belonged. +But still, it carried the mind back to those +stirring times when the leafy shades of Gray's Inn +Lane must have resounded with the clank of weapons +and the tramp of armed men; when this bald recreation-ground +was a rustic churchyard, standing amidst green +fields and hedgerows, and countrymen leading their +pack-horses into London through the Lane would stop +to look in over the wooden gate. +</p> +<p> +Miss Bellingham looked at me critically as I stood +thus reflecting, and presently remarked, "I think you +and I have a good many mental habits in common." +</p> +<p> +I looked up inquiringly, and she continued: "I notice +that an old tombstone seems to set you meditating. +So it does me. When I look at an ancient monument, +and especially an old headstone, I find myself almost +unconsciously retracing the years to the date that is +written on the stone. Why do you think that is? Why +should a monument be so stimulating to the imagination? +And why should a common headstone be more +so than any other?" +</p> +<p> +"I suppose it is," I answered reflectively, "that a +churchyard monument is a peculiarly personal thing +and appertains in a peculiar way to a particular time. +And the circumstance that it has stood untouched by +the passing years while everything around has changed, +helps the imagination to span the interval. And the +common headstone, the memorial of some dead and +gone farmer or labourer who lived and died in the +village hard by, is still more intimate and suggestive. +The rustic, childish sculpture of the village mason and +the artless doggerel of the village schoolmaster, bring +back the time and place and the conditions of life much +more vividly than the more scholarly inscriptions and +the more artistic enrichments of monuments of greater +pretensions. But where are your own family tombstones?" +</p> +<p> +"They are over in that farther corner. There is an +intelligent, but inopportune, person apparently copying +the epitaphs. I wish he would go away. I want +to show them to you." +</p> +<p> +I now noticed, for the first time, an individual engaged, +note-book in hand, in making a careful survey +of a group of old headstones. Evidently he was making +a copy of the inscriptions, for not only was he poring +attentively over the writing on the face of the stone, +but now and again he helped out his vision by running +his fingers over the worn lettering. +</p> +<p> +"That is my grandfather's tombstone that he is +copying now," said Miss Bellingham; and even as she +spoke, the man turned and directed a searching glance +at us with a pair of keen, spectacled eyes. +</p> +<p> +Simultaneously we uttered an exclamation of surprise; +for the investigator was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH16"><!-- CH16 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XVI +</h2> + +<h3> +"O! ARTEMIDORUS, FAREWELL!" +</h3> +<p> +Whether or not Mr. Jellicoe was surprised to see us, +it is impossible to say. His countenance (which served +the ordinary purposes of a face, inasmuch as it contained +the principal organs of special sense, with the +inlets to the alimentary and respiratory tracts) was, +as an apparatus for the expression of the emotions, a +total failure. To a thought-reader it would have been +about as helpful as the face carved upon the handle +of an umbrella; a comparison suggested, perhaps, by +a certain resemblance to such an object. He advanced, +holding his open note-book and pencil, and having +saluted us with a stiff bow and an old-fashioned flourish +of his hat, shook hands rheumatically and waited for +us to speak. +</p> +<p> +"This is an unexpected pleasure, Mr. Jellicoe," said +Miss Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"It is very good of you to say so," he +replied. +</p> +<p> +"And quite a coincidence—that we should all happen +to come here on the same day." +</p> +<p> +"A coincidence, certainly," he admitted; "and if +we had all happened not to come—which must have +occurred frequently—that also would have been a +coincidence." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose it would," said she, "but I hope we are +not interrupting you." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you, no. I had just finished when I had +the pleasure of perceiving you." +</p> +<p> +"You were making some notes in reference to the +case, I imagine," said I. It was an impertinent question, +put with malice aforethought for the mere pleasure +of hearing him evade it. +</p> +<p> +"The case?" he repeated. "You are referring, +perhaps, to Stevens versus the Parish Council?" +</p> +<p> +"I think Doctor Berkeley was referring to the case +of my uncle's will," Miss Bellingham said quite gravely, +though with a suspicious dimpling about the corners +of her mouth. +</p> +<p> +"Indeed," said Mr. Jellicoe. "There is a case, is +there; a suit?" +</p> +<p> +"I mean the proceedings instituted by Mr. Hurst." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, but that was merely an application to the +Court, and is, moreover, finished and done with. At +least, so I understand. I speak, of course, subject to +correction; I am not acting for Mr. Hurst, you will +be pleased to remember. As a matter of fact," he +continued, after a brief pause, "I was just refreshing +my memory as to the wording of the inscriptions on +these stones, especially that of your grandfather, Francis +Bellingham. It has occurred to me that if it should +appear by the finding of the coroner's jury that your +uncle is deceased, it would be proper and decorous that +some memorial should be placed here. But, as the +burial-ground is closed, there might be some difficulty +about erecting a new monument, whereas there would +probably be none in adding an inscription to one already +existing. Hence these investigations. For if +the inscription on your grandfather's stone had set +forth that 'here rests the body of Francis Bellingham,' +it would have been manifestly improper to add 'also +that of John Bellingham, son of the above.' Fortunately +the inscription was more discreetly drafted, +merely recording the fact that this monument is +'sacred to the memory of the said Francis,' and not +committing itself as to the whereabouts of the remains. +But perhaps I am interrupting you?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not at all," replied Miss Bellingham (which +was grossly untrue; he was interrupting <i>me</i> most intolerably); +"we were going to the British Museum and +just looked in here on our way." +</p> +<p> +"Ha," said Mr. Jellicoe, "now, I happen to be going +to the Museum too, to see Doctor Norbury. I suppose +that is another coincidence?" +</p> +<p> +"Certainly it is," Miss Bellingham replied; and then +she asked: "Shall we walk there together?" and the +old curmudgeon actually said "yes"—confound +him! +</p> +<p> +We returned to the Gray's Inn Road, where, as there +was now room for us to walk abreast, I proceeded to +indemnify myself for the lawyer's unwelcome company +by leading the conversation back to the subject of the +missing man. +</p> +<p> +"Was there anything, Mr. Jellicoe, in Mr. John +Bellingham's state of health that would make it probable +that he might die suddenly?" +</p> +<p> +The lawyer looked at me suspiciously for a few moments +and then remarked: +</p> +<p> +"You seem to be greatly interested in John Bellingham +and his affairs." +</p> +<p> +"I am. My friends are deeply concerned in them, +and the case itself is of more than common interest +from a professional point of view." +</p> +<p> +"And what is the bearing of this particular question?" +</p> +<p> +"Surely it is obvious," said I. "If a missing man +is known to have suffered from some affection, such +as heart disease, aneurism, or arterial degeneration, +likely to produce sudden death, that fact will surely be +highly material to the question as to whether he is +probably dead or alive." +</p> +<p> +"No doubt you are right," said Mr. Jellicoe. "I +have little knowledge of medical affairs, but doubtless +you are right. As to the question itself, I am Mr. +Bellingham's lawyer, not his doctor. His health is a +matter that lies outside my jurisdiction. But you +heard my evidence in Court, to the effect that the testator +appeared, to my untutored observation, to be a +healthy man. I can say no more now." +</p> +<p> +"If the question is of any importance," said Miss +Bellingham, "I wonder they did not call his doctor +and settle it definitely. My own impression is that he +was—or is—rather a strong and sound man. He certainly +recovered very quickly and completely after his +accident." +</p> +<p> +"What accident was that?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, hasn't my father told you? It occurred while +he was staying with us. He slipped from a high kerb +and broke one of the bones of the left ankle—somebody's +fracture—" +</p> +<p> +"Pott's?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that was the name—Pott's fracture; and he +broke both his knee-caps as well. Sir Morgan Bennet +had to perform an operation, or he would have been a +cripple for life. As it was, he was about again in a few +weeks, apparently none the worse excepting for a slight +weakness of the left ankle." +</p> +<p> +"Could he walk upstairs?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Oh, yes; and play golf and ride a bicycle." +</p> +<p> +"You are sure he broke both knee-caps?" +</p> +<p> +"Quite sure. I remember that it was mentioned as +an uncommon injury, and that Sir Morgan seemed +quite pleased with him for doing it." +</p> +<p> +"That sounds rather libellous; but I expect he was +pleased with the result of the operation. He might +well be." +</p> +<p> +Here there was a brief lull in the conversation, and, +even as I was trying to think of a poser for Mr. Jellicoe, +that gentleman took the opportunity to change the +subject. +</p> +<p> +"Are you going to the Egyptian Rooms?" he asked. +</p> +<p> +"No," replied Miss Bellingham; "we are going to +look at the pottery." +</p> +<p> +"Ancient or modern?" +</p> +<p> +"The old Fulham ware is what chiefly interests us +at present; that of the seventeenth century. I don't +know whether you would call that ancient or +modern." +</p> +<p> +"Neither do I," said Mr. Jellicoe. "Antiquity and +modernity are terms that have no fixed connotation. +They are purely relative and their application in a particular +instance has to be determined by a sort of sliding +scale. To a furniture collector, a Tudor chair or a +Jacobean chest is ancient; to an architect, their period +is modern, whereas an eleventh-century church is +ancient; but to an Egyptologist, accustomed to remains +of a vast antiquity, both are products of modern +periods separated by an insignificant interval. And, I +suppose," he added, reflectively, "that to a geologist, +the traces of the very earliest dawn of human history +appertain only to the recent period. Conceptions of +time, like all other conceptions, are relative." +</p> +<p> +"You appear to be a disciple of Herbert Spencer," +I remarked. +</p> +<p> +"I am a disciple of Arthur Jellicoe, sir," he retorted. +And I believed him. +</p> +<p> +By the time we had reached the Museum he had +become almost genial; and, if less amusing in this +frame, he was so much more instructive and entertaining +that I refrained from baiting him, and permitted +him to discuss his favourite topic unhindered, especially +since my companion listened with lively interest. Nor, +when we entered the great hall, did he relinquish possession +of us, and we followed submissively, as he led +the way past the winged bulls of Nineveh and the great +seated statues, until we found ourselves, almost without +the exercise of our volition, in the upper room +amidst the glaring mummy cases that had witnessed +the birth of my friendship with Ruth Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"Before I leave you," said Mr. Jellicoe, "I should +like to show you that mummy that we were discussing +the other evening; the one, you remember, that my +friend, John Bellingham, presented to the Museum a +little time before his disappearance. The point that +I mentioned is only a trivial one, but it may become +of interest hereafter if any plausible explanation should +be forthcoming." He led us along the room until we +arrived at the case containing John Bellingham's gift, +where he halted and gazed in at the mummy with the +affectionate reflectiveness of the connoisseur. +</p> +<p> +"The bitumen coating was what we were discussing, +Miss Bellingham," said he. "You have seen it, of +course." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," she answered. "It is a dreadful disfigurement, +isn't it?" +</p> +<p> +"Aesthetically it is to be deplored, but it adds a +certain speculative interest to the specimen. You notice +that the black coating leaves the principal decoration +and the whole of the inscription untouched, which +is precisely the part that one would expect to find +covered up; whereas the feet and the back, which +probably bore no writing, are quite thickly encrusted. +If you stoop down, you can see that the bitumen was +daubed freely into the lacings of the back, where it +served no purpose, so that even the strings are embedded." +He stooped, as he spoke, and peered up +inquisitively at the back of the mummy, where it was +visible between the supports. +</p> +<p> +"Has Doctor Norbury any explanation to offer?" +asked Miss Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"None whatever," replied Mr. Jellicoe. "He finds +it as great a mystery as I do. But he thinks that we +may get some suggestion from the Director when he +comes back. He is a very great authority, as you +know, and a practical excavator of great experience +too. But I mustn't stay here talking of these things, +and keeping you from your pottery. Perhaps I have +stayed too long already. If I have I ask your pardon, +and I will now wish you a very good afternoon." With +a sudden return to his customary wooden impassivity, +he shook hands with us, bowed stiffly, and took himself +off towards the curator's office. +</p> +<p> +"What a strange man that is," said Miss Bellingham, +as Mr. Jellicoe disappeared through the doorway +at the end of the room, "or perhaps I should say, +a strange being, for I can hardly think of him as a +man. I have never met any other human creature at +all like him." +</p> +<p> +"He is certainly a queer old fogey," I agreed. +</p> +<p> +"Yes, but there is something more than that. He +is so emotionless, so remote and aloof from all mundane +concerns. He moves among ordinary men and women, +but as a mere presence, an unmoved spectator of their +actions, quite dispassionate and impersonal." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, he is astonishingly self-contained; in fact, he +seems, as you say, to go to and fro among men, enveloped +in a sort of infernal atmosphere of his own, like +Marley's ghost. But he is lively and human enough +as soon as the subject of Egyptian antiquities is +broached." +</p> +<p> +"Lively, but not human. He is always, to me, quite +unhuman. Even when he is most interested, and even +enthusiastic, he is a mere personification of knowledge. +Nature ought to have furnished him with an ibis' head +like Tahuti; then he would have looked his part." +</p> +<p> +"He would have made a rare sensation in Lincoln's +Inn if she had," said I; and we both laughed heartily +at the imaginary picture of Tahuti Jellicoe, slender-beaked +and top-hatted, going about his business in +Lincoln's Inn and the Law Courts. +</p> +<p> +Insensibly, as we talked, we had drawn near to the +mummy of Artemidorus, and now my companion halted +before the case with her thoughtful grey eyes bent +dreamily on the face that looked out at us. I watched +her with reverent admiration. How charming she +looked as she stood with her sweet, grave face turned +so earnestly to the object of her mystical affection! +How dainty and full of womanly dignity and grace! +And then, suddenly, it was borne in upon me that a +great change had come over her since the day of our +first meeting. She had grown younger, more girlish, +and more gentle. At first she had seemed much older +than I; a sad-faced woman, weary, solemn, enigmatic, +almost gloomy, with a bitter, ironic humour and a bearing +distant and cold. Now she was only maidenly and +sweet; tinged, it is true, with a certain seriousness, +but frank and gracious and wholly lovable. +</p> +<p> +Could the change be due to our growing friendship? +As I asked myself the question, my heart leaped with +a new-born hope. I yearned to tell her all that she was +to me—all that I hoped we might be to one another +in the years to come. +</p> +<p> +At length I ventured to break in upon her reverie. +</p> +<p> +"What are you thinking about so earnestly, fair +lady?" +</p> +<p> +She turned quickly with a bright smile and sparkling +eyes that looked frankly into mine. "I was wondering," +said she, "if he was jealous of my new friend. +But what a baby I am to talk such nonsense!" +</p> +<p> +She laughed softly and happily with just an adorable +hint of shyness. +</p> +<p> +"Why should he be jealous?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Well, you see, before—we were friends, he had me +all to himself. I have never had a man-friend before—except +my father—and no really intimate friend at +all. And I was very lonely in those days, after our +troubles had befallen. I am naturally solitary, but +still, I am only a girl; I am not a philosopher. So +when I felt very lonely, I used to come here and look +at Artemidorus and make believe that he knew all the +sadness of my life and sympathised with me. It was +very silly, I know, but yet, somehow it was a real +comfort to me." +</p> +<p> +"It was not silly of you at all. He must have been +a good man, a gentle, sweet-faced man who had won +the love of those who knew him, as this beautiful +memorial tells us; and it was wise and good of you to +sweeten the bitterness of your life with the fragrance +of this human love that blossoms in the dust after the +lapse of centuries. No, you were not silly, and Artemidorus +is not jealous of your new friend." +</p> +<p> +"Are you sure?" She still smiled as she asked the +question, but her glance was soft—almost tender—and +there was a note of whimsical anxiety in her voice. +</p> +<p> +"Quite sure. I give you my confident assurance." +</p> +<p> +She laughed gaily. "Then," said she, "I am satisfied, +for I am sure you know. But here is a mighty +telepathist who can read the thoughts even of a mummy. +A most formidable companion. But tell me how you +know." +</p> +<p> +"I know, because it is he who gave you to me to be +my friend. Don't you remember?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I remember," she answered, softly. "It was +when you were so sympathetic with my foolish whim +that I felt we were really friends." +</p> +<p> +"And I, when you confided your pretty fancy to me, +thanked you for the gift of your friendship, and +treasured it, and do still treasure it, above everything +on earth." +</p> +<p> +She looked at me quickly with a sort of nervousness +in her manner, and cast down her eyes. Then, after a +few moments' almost embarrassed silence, as if to bring +our talk back to a less emotional plane, she said: +</p> +<p> +"Do you notice the curious way in which this memorial +divides itself up into two distinct parts?" +</p> +<p> +"How do you mean?" I asked, a little disconcerted +by the sudden descent. +</p> +<p> +"I mean that there is a part of it that is purely +decorative and a part that is expressive or emotional. +You notice that the general design and scheme of +decoration, although really Greek in feeling, follows +rigidly the Egyptian conventions. But the portrait +is entirely in the Greek manner, and when they came +to that pathetic farewell, it had to be spoken in their +own tongue, written in their own familiar characters." +</p> +<p> +"Yes. I have noticed that and admired the taste +with which they have kept the inscription so inconspicuous +as not to clash with the decoration. An obtrusive +inscription in Greek characters would have +spoiled the consistency of the whole scheme." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, it would." She assented absently as if she +were thinking of something else, and once more gazed +thoughtfully at the mummy. I watched her with deep +content: noted the lovely contour of her cheek, the +soft masses of hair that strayed away so gracefully +from her brow, and thought her the most wonderful +creature that had ever trod the earth. Suddenly she +looked at me reflectively. +</p> +<p> +"I wonder," she said, "what made me tell you about +Artemidorus. It was a rather silly, childish sort of +make-believe, and I wouldn't have told anyone else for +the world; not even my father. How did I know that +you would sympathise and understand?" +</p> +<p> +She asked the question in all simplicity with her +serious, grey eyes looking inquiringly into mine. And +the answer came to me in a flash, with the beating of +my own heart. +</p> +<p> +"I will tell you how you knew, Ruth," I whispered +passionately. "It was because I loved you more than +anyone in the world has ever loved you, and you felt +my love in your heart and called it sympathy." +</p> +<p> +I stopped short, for she had blushed scarlet and then +turned deathly pale. And now she looked at me wildly, +almost with terror. +</p> +<p> +"Have I shocked you, Ruth, dearest?" I exclaimed +penitently, "have I spoken too soon? If I have, forgive +me. But I had to tell you. I have been eating my +heart out for love of you for I don't know how long. +I think I have loved you from the first day we met. +Perhaps I shouldn't have spoken yet, but, Ruth, dear, +if you only knew what a sweet girl you are, you +wouldn't blame me." +</p> +<p> +"I don't blame you," she said, almost in a whisper; +"I blame myself. I have been a bad friend to you, +who have been so loyal and loving to me. I ought not +to have let this happen. For it can't be, Paul; I can't +say what you want me to say. We can never be anything +more to one another than friends." +</p> +<p> +A cold hand seemed to grasp my heart—a horrible +fear that I had lost all that I cared for—all that made +life desirable. +</p> +<p> +"Why can't we?" I asked. "Do you mean that—that +the gods have been gracious to some other +man?" +</p> +<p> +"No, no," she answered, hastily—almost indignantly, +"of course I don't mean that." +</p> +<p> +"Then it is only that you don't love me yet. Of +course you don't. Why should you? But you will, +dear, some day. And I will wait patiently until that +day comes and not trouble you with entreaties. I will +wait for you as Jacob waited for Rachel; and as the +long years seemed to him but as a few days because +of the love he bore her, so it shall be with me, if only +you will not send me away quite without hope." +</p> +<p> +She was looking down, white-faced, with a hardening +of the lips as if she were in bodily pain. "You don't +understand," she whispered. "It can't be—it can +never be. There is something that makes it impossible, +now and always. I can't tell you more than +that." +</p> +<p> +"But, Ruth, dearest," I pleaded despairingly, "may +it not become possible some day? Can it not be made +possible? I can wait, but I can't give you up. Is there +no chance whatever that this obstacle may be removed?" +</p> +<p> +"Very little, I fear. Hardly any. No, Paul; it is +hopeless, and I can't bear to talk about it. Let me +go now. Let us say good-bye here and see one another +no more for a while. Perhaps we may be friends again +some day—when you have forgiven me." +</p> +<p> +"Forgiven you, dearest!" I exclaimed. "There is +nothing to forgive. And we are friends, Ruth. Whatever +happens, you are the dearest friend I have on +earth, or can ever have." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you, Paul," she said faintly. "You are +very good to me. But let me go, please. I must go. +I must be alone." +</p> +<p> +She held out a trembling hand, and, as I took it, I +was shocked to see how terribly agitated and ill she +looked. +</p> +<p> +"May I not come with you, dear?" I pleaded. +</p> +<p> +"No, no!" she exclaimed breathlessly; "I must go +away by myself. I want to be alone. Good-bye!" +</p> +<p> +"Before I let you go, Ruth—if you must go—I +must have a solemn promise from you." +</p> +<p> +Her sad grey eyes met mine and her lips quivered +with an unspoken question. +</p> +<p> +"You must promise me," I went on, "that if ever +this barrier that parts us should be removed, you will +let me know instantly. Remember that I love you +always, and that I am waiting for you always on this +side of the grave." +</p> +<p> +She caught her breath in a little quick sob, and +pressed my hand. +</p> +<p> +"Yes," she whispered: "I promise. Good-bye." +She pressed my hand again and was gone; and, as I +gazed at the empty doorway through which she had +passed, I caught a glimpse of her reflection in a glass +case on the landing, where she had paused for a moment +to wipe her eyes. I felt it, in a manner, indelicate to +have seen her, and turned away my head quickly; +and yet I was conscious of a certain selfish satisfaction +in the sweet sympathy that her grief bespoke. +</p> +<p> +But now that she was gone a horrible sense of desolation +descended on me. Only now, by the consciousness +of irreparable loss, did I begin to realise the meaning +of this passion of love that had stolen unawares +into my life. How it had glorified the present and +spread a glamour of delight over the dimly considered +future: how all pleasures and desires, all hopes and +ambitions, had converged upon it as a focus; how it +had stood out as the one great reality behind which +the other circumstances of life were as a background, +shimmering, half seen, immaterial, and unreal. And +now it was gone—lost, as it seemed, beyond hope; and +that which was left to me was but the empty frame +from which the picture had vanished. +</p> +<p> +I have no idea how long I stood rooted to the spot +where she had left me, wrapped in a dull consciousness +of pain, immersed in a half-numb reverie. Recent +events flitted, dream-like, through my mind; our happy +labours in the reading-room; our first visit to the +Museum; and this present day that had opened so +brightly and with such joyous promise. One by one +these phantoms of a vanished happiness came and went. +Occasional visitors sauntered into the room—but the +galleries were mostly empty that day—gazed inquisitively +at my motionless figure, and went their way. +And still the dull, intolerable ache in my breast went +on, the only vivid consciousness that was left to me. +</p> +<p> +Presently I raised my eyes and met those of the +portrait. The sweet, pensive face of the old Greek +settler looked out at me wistfully as though he would +offer comfort; as though he would tell me that he, +too, had known sorrow when he lived his life in the +sunny Fayyum. And a subtle consolation, like the +faint scent of old rose leaves, seemed to exhale from +that friendly face that had looked on the birth of my +happiness and had seen it wither and fade. I turned +away, at last, with a silent farewell; and when I looked +back, he seemed to speed me on my way with gentle +valediction. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH17"><!-- CH17 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XVII +</h2> + +<h3> +THE ACCUSING FINGER +</h3> +<p> +Of my wanderings after I left the Museum on that +black and dismal <i>dies irae</i>, I have but a dim recollection. +But I must have travelled a quite considerable distance, +since it wanted an hour or two to the time for +returning to the surgery, and I spent the interval walking +swiftly through streets and squares, unmindful of +the happenings around, intent only on my present misfortune, +and driven by a natural impulse to seek relief +in bodily exertion. For mental distress sets up, as it +were, a sort of induced current of physical unrest; a +beneficent arrangement, by which a dangerous excess +of emotional excitement may be transformed into motor +energy, and so safely got rid of. The motor apparatus +acts as a safety-valve to the psychical; and if the engine +races for a while, with the onset of bodily fatigue +the emotional pressure-gauge returns to a normal reading. +</p> +<p> +And so it was with me. At first I was conscious of +nothing but a sense of utter bereavement, of the shipwreck +of all my hopes. But, by degrees, as I threaded +my way among the moving crowds, I came to a better +and more worthy frame of mind. After all, I had lost +nothing that I had ever had. Ruth was still all that +she had ever been to me—perhaps even more; and if +that had been a rich endowment yesterday, why not +to-day also? And how unfair it would be to her if I +should mope and grieve over a disappointment that +was no fault of hers and for which there was no remedy! +Thus I reasoned with myself, and to such purpose that, +by the time I reached Fetter Lane, my dejection had +come to quite manageable proportions and I had formed +the resolution to get back to the <i>status quo ante bellum</i> +as soon as possible. +</p> +<p> +About eight o'clock, as I was sitting alone in the +consulting-room, gloomily persuading myself that I was +now quite resigned to the inevitable, Adolphus brought +me a registered packet, at the handwriting on which +my heart gave such a bound that I had much ado to +sign the receipt. As soon as Adolphus had retired +(with undissembled contempt of the shaky signature) +I tore open the packet, and as I drew out a letter a +tiny box dropped on the table. +</p> +<p> +The letter was all too short, and I devoured it over +and over again with the eagerness of a condemned man +reading a reprieve:— +</p> +<p> +"My Dear Paul, +</p> +<p> +"Forgive me for leaving you so abruptly this +afternoon, and leaving you so unhappy, too. I am more +sane and reasonable now, and so send you greeting and +beg you not to grieve for that which can never be. It +is quite impossible, dear friend, and I entreat you, as +you care for me, never to speak of it again; never +again to make me feel that I can give so little when +you have given so much. And do not try to see me +for a little while. I shall miss your visits, and so will +my father, who is very fond of you; but it is better +that we should not meet, until we can take up the old +relations—if that can ever be. +</p> +<p> +"I am sending you a little keepsake in case we +should drift apart on the eddies of life. It is the ring +that I told you about—the one that my uncle gave +me. Perhaps you may be able to wear it as you +have a small hand, but in any case keep it in remembrance +of our friendship. The device on it is the Eye +of Osiris, a mystic symbol for which I have a sentimentally +superstitious affection, as also had my poor +uncle, who actually bore it tattooed in scarlet on his +breast. It signifies that the great judge of the dead +looks down on men to see that justice is done and that +truth prevails. So I commend you to the good Osiris; +may his eye be upon you, ever watchful over your +welfare in the absence of +</p> +<p> +"Your affectionate friend +</p> +<center> +"RUTH." +</center> +<p> +It was a sweet letter, I thought, even if it carried +little comfort; quiet and reticent like its writer, but +with an undertone of sincere affection. I laid it down +at length, and, taking the ring from its box, examined +it fondly. Though but a copy, it had all the quaintness +and feeling of the antique original, and, above all, +it was fragrant with the spirit of the giver. Dainty +and delicate, wrought of silver and gold, with an inlay +of copper, I would not have exchanged it for the Koh-i-noor; +and when I had slipped it on my finger its tiny +eye of blue enamel looked up at me so friendly and +companionable that I felt the glamour of the old-world +superstition stealing over me, too. +</p> +<p> +Not a single patient came in this evening, which was +well for me (and also for the patient), as I was able +forthwith to write in reply a long letter; but this I +shall spare the long-suffering reader excepting its concluding +paragraph:— +</p> +<p> +"And now, dearest, I have said my say; once for +all, I have said it, and I will not open my mouth on +the subject again (I am not actually opening it now) +'until the times do alter.' And if the times do never +alter—if it shall come to pass, in due course, that we +two shall sit side by side, white-haired, and crinkly-nosed, +and lean our poor old chins upon our sticks and +mumble and gibber amicably over the things that might +have been if the good Osiris had come up to the +scratch—I will still be content, because your friendship, +Ruth, is better than another woman's love. So +you see, I have taken my gruel and come up to time +smiling—if you will pardon the pugilistic metaphor—and +I promise you loyally to do your bidding and never +again to distress you. +</p> +<p> +"Your faithful and loving friend, +</p> +<center> +"PAUL." +</center> +<p> +This letter I addressed and stamped, and then, with +a wry grimace which I palmed off on myself (but not +on Adolphus) as a cheerful smile, I went out and +dropped it into the post-box; after which I further +deluded myself by murmuring <i>Nunc dimittis</i> and assuring +myself that the incident was now absolutely closed. +</p> +<p> +But, despite this comfortable assurance, I was, in +the days that followed, an exceedingly miserable young +man. It is all very well to write down troubles of this +kind as trivial and sentimental. They are nothing of +the kind. When a man of an essentially serious nature +has found the one woman of all the world who fulfils +his highest ideals of womanhood, who is, in fact, a +woman in ten thousand, to whom he has given all that +he has to give of love and worship, the sudden wreck +of all his hopes is no small calamity. And so I found +it. Resign myself as I would to the bitter reality, the +ghost of the might-have-been haunted me night and +day, so that I spent my leisure wandering abstractedly +about the streets, always trying to banish thought and +never for an instant succeeding. A great unrest was +upon me; and when I received a letter from Dick +Barnard announcing his arrival at Madeira, homeward +bound, I breathed a sigh of relief. I had no plans for +the future, but I longed to be rid of the, now irksome, +routine of the practice—to be free to come and go +when and how I pleased. +</p> +<p> +One evening, as I sat consuming with little appetite +my solitary supper, there fell on me a sudden sense of +loneliness. The desire that I had hitherto felt to be +alone with my own miserable reflections gave place to +a yearning for human companionship. That, indeed, +which I craved for most was forbidden, and I must +abide by my lady's wishes; but there were my friends +in the Temple. It was more than a week since I had +seen them; in fact, we had not met since the morning +of that unhappiest day of my life. They would be +wondering what had become of me. I rose from the +table, and, having filled my pouch from a tin of +tobacco, set forth for King's Bench Walk. +</p> +<p> +As I approached the entry of No. 5A in the gathering +darkness I met Thorndyke himself emerging, encumbered +with two deck-chairs, a reading-lantern, and a +book. +</p> +<p> +"Why, Berkeley!" he exclaimed, "is it indeed thou? +We have been wondering what had become of you." +</p> +<p> +"It <i>is</i> a long time since I looked you up," I +admitted. +</p> +<p> +He scrutinised me attentively by the light of the +entry lamp, and then remarked: "Fetter Lane doesn't +seem to be agreeing with you very well, my son. You +are looking quite thin and peaky." +</p> +<p> +"Well, I've nearly done with it. Barnard will be +back in about ten days. His ship is putting in at +Madeira to coal and take in some cargo, and then he is +coming home. Where are you going with those +chairs?" +</p> +<p> +"I am going to sit down at the end of the Walk by +the garden railings. It's cooler there than indoors. +If you will wait a moment I will fetch another chair +for Jervis, though he won't be back for a little while." +He ran up the stairs, and presently returned with a +third chair, and we carried our impedimenta down to +the quiet corner at the bottom of the Walk. +</p> +<p> +"So your term of servitude is coming to an end," +said he when we had placed the chairs and hung the +lantern on the railings. "Any other news?" +</p> +<p> +"No. Have you any?" +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid I have not. All my inquiries have +yielded negative results. There is, of course, a considerable +body of evidence, and it all seems to point +one way. But I am unwilling to make a decisive move +without something more definite. I am really waiting +for confirmation or otherwise of my ideas on the subject; +for some new item of evidence." +</p> +<p> +"I didn't know there was any evidence." +</p> +<p> +"Didn't you?" said Thorndyke. "But you know +as much as I know. You have all the essential facts; +but apparently you haven't collated them and extracted +their meaning. If you had, you would have found +them curiously significant." +</p> +<p> +"I suppose I mustn't ask what their significance is?" +</p> +<p> +"No, I think not. When I am conducting a case I +mention my surmises to nobody—not even to Jervis. +Then I can say confidently that there has been no +leakage. Don't think I distrust you. Remember that +my thoughts are my client's property, and that the +essence of strategy is to keep the enemy in the dark." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I see that. Of course, I ought not to have +asked." +</p> +<p> +"You ought not to need to ask," Thorndyke replied, +with a smile; "you should put the facts together +and reason from them yourself." +</p> +<p> +While we had been talking I had noticed Thorndyke +glance at me inquisitively from time to time. Now, +after an interval of silence, he asked suddenly: +</p> +<p> +"Is anything amiss, Berkeley? Are you worrying +about your friends' affairs?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not particularly; though their prospects don't +look very rosy." +</p> +<p> +"Perhaps they are not quite so bad as they look," +said he. "But I am afraid something is troubling you. +All your gay spirits seem to have evaporated." He +paused for a few moments, and then added: "I don't +want to intrude on your private affairs, but if I can +help you by advice or otherwise, remember that we are +old friends and that you are my academic offspring." +</p> +<p> +Instinctively, with a man's natural reticence, I began +to mumble a half-articulate disclaimer; and then I +stopped. After all, why should I not confide in him? +He was a good man and a wise man, full of human +sympathy, as I knew, though so cryptic and secretive +in his professional capacity. And I wanted a friend +badly just now. +</p> +<p> +"I am afraid," I began shyly, "it is not a matter +that admits of much help, and it's hardly the sort of +thing that I ought to worry you by talking about——" +</p> +<p> +"If it is enough to make you unhappy, my dear +fellow, it is enough to merit serious consideration by +your friend; so, if you don't mind telling me——" +</p> +<p> +"Of course I don't, sir!" I exclaimed. +</p> +<p> +"Then fire away; and don't call me 'sir.' We are +brother practitioners now." +</p> +<p> +Thus encouraged, I poured out the story of my little +romance; bashfully at first and with halting phrases, +but, later, with more freedom and confidence. He +listened with grave attention, and once or twice put a +question when my narrative became a little disconnected. +When I had finished he laid his hand softly +on my arm. +</p> +<p> +"You have had rough luck, Berkeley. I don't wonder +that you are miserable. I am more sorry than I +can tell you." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you," I said. "It's exceedingly good of +you to listen so patiently, but it's a shame for me to +pester you with my sentimental troubles." +</p> +<p> +"Now, Berkeley, you don't think that, and I hope +you don't think that I do. We should be bad biologists +and worse physicians if we should under-estimate the +importance of that which is Nature's chiefest care. +The one salient biological truth is the paramount importance +of sex; and we are deaf and blind if we do +not hear and see it in everything that lives when we +look abroad upon the world; when we listen to the +spring song of the birds, or when we consider the lilies +of the field. And as is man to the lower organisms, so +is human love to their merely reflex manifestations of +sex. I will maintain, and you will agree with me, I +know, that the love of a serious and honourable man +for a woman who is worthy of him is the most momentous +of all human affairs. It is the foundation of social +life, and its failure is a serious calamity, not only to +those whose lives may be thereby spoilt, but to society +at large." +</p> +<p> +"It's a serious enough matter for the parties concerned," +I agreed; "but that is no reason why they +should bore their friends." +</p> +<p> +"But they don't. Friends should help one another +and think it a privilege." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, I shouldn't mind coming to you for help, knowing +you as I do. But no one can help a poor devil in +a case like this—and certainly not a medical jurist." +</p> +<p> +"Oh, come, Berkeley!" he protested, "don't rate +us too low. The humblest of creatures has its uses—'even +the little pismire,' you know, as Isaak Walton +tells us. Why, I have got substantial help from a +stamp-collector. And then reflect upon the motor-scorcher +and the earthworm and the blow-fly. All these +lowly creatures play their parts in the scheme of Nature; +and shall we cast out the medical jurist as nothing +worth?" +</p> +<p> +I laughed dejectedly at my teacher's genial irony. +</p> +<p> +"What I meant," said I, "was that there is nothing +to be done but wait—perhaps for ever. I don't know +why she isn't able to marry me, and I mustn't ask her. +She can't be married already." +</p> +<p> +"Certainly not. She told you explicitly that there +was no man in the case." +</p> +<p> +"Exactly. And I can think of no other valid reason, +excepting that she doesn't care enough for me. That +would be a perfectly sound reason, but then it would +only be a temporary one, not the insuperable obstacle +that she assumes to exist, especially as we really got +on excellently together. I hope it isn't some confounded +perverse feminine scruple. I don't see how it could be; +but women are most frightfully tortuous and wrong-headed +at times." +</p> +<p> +"I don't see," said Thorndyke, "why we should cast +about for perversely abnormal motives when there is a +perfectly reasonable explanation staring us in the face." +</p> +<p> +"Is there?" I exclaimed. "I see none." +</p> +<p> +"You are, not unnaturally, overlooking some of the +circumstances that affect Miss Bellingham; but I don't +suppose she has failed to grasp their meaning. Do you +realise what her position really is? I mean with regard +to her uncle's disappearance?" +</p> +<p> +"I don't think I quite understand you." +</p> +<p> +"Well, there is no use in blinking the facts," said +Thorndyke. "The position is this: If John Bellingham +ever went to his brother's house at Woodford, it +is nearly certain that he went there after his visit to +Hurst. Mind, I say '<i>if</i> he went'; I don't say that I +believe he did. But it is stated that he appears to +have gone there; and if he did go, he was never seen +alive afterwards. Now, he did not go in at the front +door. No one saw him enter the house. But there +was a back gate, which John Bellingham knew, and +which had a bell which rang in the library. And you +will remember that, when Hurst and Jellicoe called, +Mr. Bellingham had only just come in. Previous to +that time Miss Bellingham had been alone in the +library; that is to say, she was alone in the library at +the very time when John Bellingham is said to have +made his visit. That is the position, Berkeley. Nothing +pointed has been said up to the present. But, +sooner or later, if John Bellingham is not found, dead +or alive, the question will be opened. Then it is certain +that Hurst, in self-defence, will make the most of any +facts that may transfer suspicion from him to someone +else. And that someone else will be Miss Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +I sat for some moments literally paralysed with +horror. Then my dismay gave place to indignation. +"But, damn it!" I exclaimed, starting up—"I beg +your pardon—but could anyone have the infernal +audacity to insinuate that that gentle, refined lady +murdered her uncle?" +</p> +<p> +"That is what will be hinted, if not plainly asserted; +and she knows it. And that being so, is it difficult to +understand why she should refuse to allow you to be +publicly associated with her? To run the risk of dragging +your honourable name into the sordid transactions +of the police-court or the Old Bailey? To invest +it, perhaps, with a dreadful notoriety?" +</p> +<p> +"Oh, don't! for God's sake! It is too horrible! +Not that I would care for myself. I would be proud +to share her martyrdom of ignominy, if it had to be; +but it is the sacrilege, the blasphemy of even thinking +of her in such terms, that enrages me." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," said Thorndyke; "I understand and sympathise +with you. Indeed, I share your righteous indignation +at this dastardly affair. So you mustn't +think me brutal for putting the case so plainly." +</p> +<p> +"I don't. You have only shown me the danger that +I was fool enough not to see. But you seem to imply +that this hideous position has been brought about deliberately." +</p> +<p> +"Certainly I do! This is no chance affair. Either +the appearances indicate the real events—which I am +sure they do not—or they have been created of a set +purpose to lead to false conclusions. But the circumstances +convince me that there has been a deliberate +plot; and I am waiting—in no spirit of Christian +patience, I can tell you—to lay my hand on the wretch +who has done this." +</p> +<p> +"What are you waiting for?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"I am waiting for the inevitable," he replied; "for +the false move that the most artful criminal invariably +makes. At present he is lying low; but presently he +must make a move, and then I shall have him." +</p> +<p> +"But he may go on lying low. What will you do +then?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, that is the danger. We may have to deal +with the perfect villain who knows when to leave well +alone. I have never met him, but he may exist, nevertheless." +</p> +<p> +"And then we should have to stand by and see our +friends go under." +</p> +<p> +"Perhaps," said Thorndyke; and we both subsided +into gloomy and silent reflection. +</p> +<p> +The place was peaceful and quiet, as only a backwater +of London can be. Occasional hoots from far-away +tugs and steamers told of the busy life down +below in the crowded Pool. A faint hum of traffic was +borne in from the streets outside the precincts, and the +shrill voices of newspaper boys came in unceasing +chorus from the direction of Carmelite Street. They +were too far away to be physically disturbing, but the +excited yells, toned down as they were by distance, +nevertheless stirred the very marrow in my bones, so +dreadfully suggestive were they of those possibilities +of the future at which Thorndyke had hinted. They +seemed like the sinister shadows of coming misfortunes. +</p> +<p> +Perhaps they called up the same association of ideas +in Thorndyke's mind, for he remarked presently: +"The newsvendor is abroad to-night like a bird of ill-omen. +Something unusual has happened: some public +or private calamity, most likely, and these yelling ghouls +are out to feast on the remains. The newspaper men +have a good deal in common with the carrion-birds +that hover over a battle-field." +</p> +<p> +Again we subsided into silence and reflection. Then, +after an interval, I asked: +</p> +<p> +"Would it be possible for me to help in any way in +this investigation of yours?" +</p> +<p> +"That is exactly what I have been asking myself," +replied Thorndyke. "It would be right and proper +that you should, and I think you might." +</p> +<p> +"How?" I asked eagerly. +</p> +<p> +"I can't say off-hand; but Jervis will be going away +for his holiday almost at once—in fact, he will go off +actual duty to-night. There is very little doing; the +long vacation is close upon us, and I can do without +him. But if you would care to come down here and +take his place, you would be very useful to me; and +if there should be anything to be done in the Bellinghams' +case, I am sure you would make up in enthusiasm +for any deficiency in experience." +</p> +<p> +"I couldn't really take Jervis's place," said I, "but +if you would let me help you in any way it would be +a great kindness. I would rather clean your boots than +be out of it altogether." +</p> +<p> +"Very well. Let us leave it that you come here as +soon as Barnard has done with you. You can have +Jervis's room, which he doesn't often use nowadays, +and you will be more happy here than elsewhere, I +know. I may as well give you my latchkey now. I +have a duplicate upstairs, and you understand that my +chambers are yours too from this moment." +</p> +<p> +He handed me the latchkey and I thanked him +warmly from my heart, for I felt sure that the suggestion +was made, not for any use that I should be to +him, but for my own peace of mind. I had hardly +finished speaking when a quick step on the paved walk +caught my ear. +</p> +<p> +"Here is Jervis," said Thorndyke. "We will let +him know that there is a locum tenens ready to step +into his shoes when he wants to be off." He flashed +the lantern across the path, and a few moments later +his junior stepped up briskly with a bundle of newspapers +tucked under his arm. +</p> +<p> +It struck me that Jervis looked at me a little queerly +when he recognised me in the dim light; also that he +was a trifle constrained in his manner, as if my presence +were an embarrassment. He listened to Thorndyke's +announcement of our newly made arrangement +without much enthusiasm and with none of his customary +facetious comments. And again I noticed a +quick glance at me, half curious, half uneasy, and +wholly puzzling to me. +</p> +<p> +"That's all right," he said when Thorndyke had +explained the situation. "I daresay you'll find Berkeley +as useful as me, and, in any case, he'll be better +here than staying on with Barnard." He spoke with +unwonted gravity, and there was in his tone a solicitude +for me that attracted my notice and that of Thorndyke +as well, for the latter looked at him curiously, though +he made no comment. After a short silence, however, +he asked: "And what news does my learned brother +bring? There is a mighty shouting among the outer +barbarians, and I see a bundle of newspapers under +my learned friend's arm. Has anything in particular +happened?" +</p> +<p> +Jervis looked more uncomfortable than ever. "Well—yes," +he replied hesitatingly, "something has happened—there! +It's no use beating about the bush; +Berkeley may as well learn it from me as from those +yelling devils outside." He took a couple of papers +from his bundle and silently handed one to me and +the other to Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +Jervis's ominous manner, naturally enough, alarmed +me not a little. I opened the paper with a nameless +dread. But whatever my vague fears, they fell far +short of the occasion; and when I saw those yells from +without crystallised into scare headlines and flaming +capitals I turned for a moment sick and dizzy with fear. +</p> +<p> +The paragraph was only a short one, and I read it +through in less than a minute: +</p> +<p><b> +"THE MISSING FINGER +</b></p> +<p><b> +"DRAMATIC DISCOVERY AT WOODFORD. +</b></p> +<p> +"The mystery that has surrounded the remains of a +mutilated human body, portions of which have been +found in various places in Kent and Essex, has received +a partial and very sinister solution. The police have, +all along, suspected that these remains were those of +a Mr. John Bellingham who disappeared under circumstances +of some suspicion about two years ago. There +is now no doubt upon the subject, for the finger which +was missing from the hand that was found at Sidcup +has been discovered at the bottom of a disused well +<i>together with a ring</i>, which has been identified as one +habitually worn by Mr. John Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"The house in the garden of which the well is situated +was the property of the murdered man, and was +occupied at the time of the disappearance by his +brother, Mr. Godfrey Bellingham. But the latter left +it very soon after, and it has been empty ever since. +Just lately it has been put in repair, and it was in this +way that the well came to be emptied and cleaned out. +It seems that Detective-Inspector Badger, who was +searching the neighbourhood for further remains, heard +of the emptying of the well and went down in the +bucket to examine the bottom, where he found the three +bones and the ring. +</p> +<p> +"Thus the identity of the body is established beyond +all doubt, and the question that remains is, Who killed +John Bellingham? It may be remembered that a +trinket, apparently broken from his watch-chain, was +found in the grounds of this house on the day that he +disappeared, and that he was never again seen alive. +What may be the import of these facts time will show." +</p> +<p> +That was all; but it was enough. I dropped the +paper to the ground and glanced round furtively at +Jervis, who sat gazing gloomily at the toes of his boots. +It was horrible; It was incredible! The blow was so +crushing that it left my faculties numb, and for a while +I seemed unable even to think intelligibly. +</p> +<p> +I was aroused by Thorndyke's voice—calm, business-like, +composed: +</p> +<p> +"Time will show, indeed! But meanwhile we must +go warily. And don't be unduly alarmed, Berkeley. +Go home, take a good dose of bromide with a little +stimulant, and turn in. I am afraid this has been +rather a shock to you." +</p> +<p> +I rose from my chair like one in a dream and held +out my hand to Thorndyke; and even in the dim light +and in my dazed condition I noticed that his face bore +a look that I had never seen before: the look of a +granite mask of Fate—grim, stern, inexorable. +</p> +<p> +My two friends walked with me as far as the gateway +at the top of Inner Temple Lane, and as we reached +the entry a stranger, coming quickly up the Lane, overtook +and passed us. In the glare of the lamp outside +the porter's lodge he looked at us quickly over his +shoulder, and though he passed on without halt or +greeting, I recognised him with a certain dull surprise +which I did not understand then and do not understand +now. It was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +I shook hands once more with my friends and strode +out into Fleet Street, but as soon as I was outside the +gate I made direct for Nevill's Court. What was in +my mind I do not know; only that some instinct of +protection led me there, where my lady lay unconscious +of the hideous menace that hung over her. At the +entrance to the court a tall, powerful man was lounging +against the wall, and he seemed to look at me +curiously as I passed; but I hardly noticed him and +strode forward into the narrow passage. By the shabby +gateway of the house I halted and looked up at such +of the windows as I could see over the wall. They +were all dark. All the inmates, then, were in bed. +Vaguely comforted by this, I walked on to the New +Street end of the court and looked out. Here, too, +a man—a tall, thick-set man—was loitering; and, as +he looked inquisitively into my face, I turned and reentered +the court, slowly retracing my steps. As I +again reached the gate of the house I stopped to look +up once more at the windows, and turning, I found the +man whom I had last noticed close behind me. Then, +in a flash of dreadful comprehension, I understood. +These two men were plain-clothes policemen. +</p> +<p> +For a moment a blind fury possessed me. An insane +impulse urged me to give battle to this intruder; to +avenge upon his person the insult of his presence. +Fortunately the impulse was but momentary, and I +recovered myself without making any demonstration. +But the appearance of those two policemen brought +the peril into the immediate present, imparted to it a +horrible actuality. A chilly sweat of terror stood on +my forehead, and my ears were ringing when I walked +with faltering steps out into Fetter Lane. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH18"><!-- CH18 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XVIII +</h2> + +<h3> +JOHN BELLINGHAM +</h3> +<p> +The next few days were a very nightmare of horror +and gloom. Of course, I repudiated my acceptance of +the decree of banishment that Ruth had passed upon +me. I was her friend, at least, and in time of peril +my place was at her side. Tacitly—though thankfully +enough, poor girl!—she had recognised the fact and +made me once more free of the house. +</p> +<p> +For there was no disguising the situation. Newspaper +boys yelled the news up and down Fleet Street +from morning to night; soul-shaking posters grinned +on gaping crowds; and the newspapers fairly wallowed +in the "Shocking details." It is true that no direct +accusations were made; but the original reports of the +disappearance were reprinted with such comments as +made me gnash my teeth with fury. +</p> +<p> +The wretchedness of those days will live in my memory +until my dying day. Never can I forget the dread +that weighed me down, the horrible suspense, the fear +that clutched at my heart as I furtively scanned the +posters in the streets. Even the wretched detectives +who prowled about the entrances to Nevill's Court became +grateful to my eyes, for, embodying as they did +the hideous menace that hung over my dear lady, their +presence at least told me that the blow had not yet +fallen. Indeed, we came, after a time, to exchange +glances of mutual recognition, and I thought that they +seemed to be sorry for her and for me, and had no great +liking for their task. Of course, I spent most of my +leisure at the old house, though my heart ached more +there than elsewhere; and I tried, with but poor success, +I fear, to maintain a cheerful, confident manner, +cracking my little jokes as of old, and even essaying +to skirmish with Miss Oman. But this last experiment +was a dead failure; and when she had suddenly broken +down in a stream of brilliant repartee to weep hysterically +on my breast, I abandoned the attempt and did +not repeat it. +</p> +<p> +A dreadful gloom had settled down upon the old +house. Poor Miss Oman crept silently but restlessly +up and down the ancient stairs with dim eyes and a +tremulous chin, or moped in her room with a parliamentary +petition (demanding, if I remember rightly, +the appointment of a female judge to deal with divorce +and matrimonial causes) which lay on her table languidly +awaiting signatures that never came. Mr. Bellingham, +whose mental condition at first alternated +between furious anger and absolute panic, was fast +sinking into a state of nervous prostration that I +viewed with no little alarm. In fact, the only really +self-possessed person in the entire household was Ruth +herself, and even she could not conceal the ravages of +sorrow and suspense and overshadowing peril. Her +manner was almost unchanged; or rather, I should +say, she had gone back to that which I had first known—quiet, +reserved, taciturn, with a certain bitter +humour showing through her unvarying amiability. +When she and I were alone, indeed, her reserve melted +away and she was all sweetness and gentleness. But it +wrung my heart to look at her, to see how, day by +day, she grew ever more thin and haggard; to watch +the growing pallor of her cheek; to look into her +solemn grey eyes, so sad and tragic and yet so brave +and defiant of fate. +</p> +<p> +It was a terrible time; and through it all the dreadful +questions haunted me continually: When will the +blow fall? What is it that the police are waiting for? +And when they do strike, what will Thorndyke have +to say? +</p> +<p> +So things went on for four dreadful days. But on +the fourth day, just as the evening consultations were +beginning and the surgery was filled with waiting +patients, Polton appeared with a note, which he insisted, +to the indignation of Adolphus, on delivering +into my own hands. It was from Thorndyke, and was +to the following effect:—— +</p> +<p> +"I learn from Dr. Norbury that he has recently +heard from Herr Lederbogen, of Berlin—a learned +authority on Oriental antiquities—who makes some +reference to an English Egyptologist whom he met in +Vienna about a year ago. He cannot recall the Englishman's +name, but there are certain expressions in +the letter which make Dr. Norbury suspect that he is +referring to John Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"I want you to bring Mr. and Miss Bellingham to +my chambers this evening at 8.30, to meet Dr. Norbury +and talk over this letter; and in view of the importance +of the matter, I look to you not to fail me." +</p> +<p> +A wave of hope and relief swept over me. It was +still possible that this Gordian knot might be cut; that +the deliverance might come before it was too late. I +wrote a hasty note in reply to Thorndyke and another +to Ruth, making the appointment; and having given +them both to the trusty Polton, returned somewhat +feverishly to my professional duties. To my profound +relief, the influx of patients ceased, and the practice +sank into its accustomed torpor; whereby I was able, +without base and mendacious subterfuge, to escape in +good time to my tryst. +</p> +<p> +It was near upon eight o'clock when I passed through +the archway into Nevill's Court. The warm afternoon +light had died away, for the summer was running out +apace. The last red glow of the setting sun had faded +from the ancient roofs and chimney-stacks, and down +in the narrow court the shades of evening had begun +to gather in nooks and corners. I was due at eight, +and, as it still wanted some minutes to the hour, I +sauntered slowly down the court, looking reflectively +on the familiar scene and the well-known friendly faces. +</p> +<p> +The day's work was drawing to a close. The little +shops were putting up their shutters; lights were beginning +to twinkle in parlour windows; a solemn hymn +arose in the old Moravian chapel, and its echoes stole +out through the dark entry that opens into the court +under the archway. +</p> +<p> +Here was Mr. Finneymore (a man of versatile gifts, +with a leaning towards paint and varnish) sitting, +white-aproned and shirt-sleeved, on a chair in his +garden, smoking his pipe with a complacent eye on +his dahlias. There at an open window a young man, +with a brush in his hand and another behind his ear, +stood up and stretched himself while an older lady +deftly rolled up a large map. The barber was turning +out the gas in his little saloon; the greengrocer was +emerging with a cigarette in his mouth and an aster +in his button-hole, and a group of children were escorting +the lamplighter on his rounds. +</p> +<p> +All these good, homely folk were Nevill's Courtiers +of the genuine breed; born in the court, as had been +their fathers before them for generations. And of such +to a great extent was the population of the place. Miss +Oman herself claimed aboriginal descent and so did +the sweet-faced Moravian lady next door—a connection +of the famous La Trobes of the old Conventicle, whose +history went back to the Gordon Riots; and as to the +gentleman who lived in the ancient timber-and-plaster +house at the bottom of the court, it was reported that +his ancestors had dwelt in that very house since the +days of James the First. +</p> +<p> +On these facts I reflected as I sauntered down the +court: on the strange phenomenon of an old-world +hamlet with its ancient population lingering in the very +heart of the noisy city; an island of peace set in +an ocean of unrest, an oasis in a desert of change and +ferment. +</p> +<p> +My meditations brought me to the shabby gate in +the high wall, and as I raised the latch and pushed it +open, I saw Ruth standing at the door of the house +talking to Miss Oman. She was evidently waiting for +me, for she wore her sombre black cloak and hat and +a black veil, and when she saw me she came out, closing +the door after her and holding out her hand. +</p> +<p> +"You are punctual," said she. "St. Dunstan's +clock is striking now." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," I answered. "But where is your father?" +</p> +<p> +"He has gone to bed, poor old dear. He didn't +feel well enough to come, and I did not urge him. He +is really very ill. This dreadful suspense will kill him +if it goes on much longer." +</p> +<p> +"Let us hope it won't," I said, but with little conviction, +I fear, in my tone. It was harrowing to see +her torn by anxiety for her father, and I yearned to +comfort her. But what was there to say? Mr. Bellingham +was breaking up visibly under the stress of the +terrible menace that hung over his daughter, and no +words of mine could make the fact less manifest. +</p> +<p> +We walked silently up the court. The lady at the +window greeted us with a smiling salutation, Mr. +Finneymore removed his pipe and raised his cap, receiving +a gracious bow from Ruth in return, and then +we passed through the covered way into Fetter Lane, +where my companion paused and looked about her. +</p> +<p> +"What are you looking for?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"The detective," she answered quietly. "It would +be a pity if the poor man should miss me after waiting +so long. However, I don't see him"; and she turned +away towards Fleet Street. It was an unpleasant surprise +to me that her sharp eyes had detected the secret +spy upon her movements; and the dry, sardonic tone +of her remark pained me, too, recalling, as it did, the +frigid self-possession that had so repelled me in the +early days of our acquaintance. And yet I could not +but admire the cool unconcern with which she faced +her horrible peril. +</p> +<p> +"Tell me a little more about this conference," she +said, as we walked down Fetter Lane. "Your note was +rather more concise than lucid; but I suppose you +wrote it in a hurry." +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I did. And I can't give you any details now. +All I know is that Doctor Norbury has had a letter +from a friend of his in Berlin, an Egyptologist, as I +understand, named Lederbogen, who refers to an English +acquaintance of his and Norbury's whom he saw +in Vienna about a year ago. He cannot remember the +Englishman's name, but from some of the circumstances +Norbury seems to think that he is referring to your +Uncle John. Of course, if this should turn out to be +really the case, it would set everything straight; so +Thorndyke was anxious that you and your father +should meet Norbury and talk it over." +</p> +<p> +"I see," said Ruth. Her tone was thoughtful but +by no means enthusiastic. +</p> +<p> +"You don't seem to attach much importance to the +matter," I remarked. +</p> +<p> +"No. It doesn't seem to fit the circumstances. +What is the use of suggesting that poor Uncle John is +alive—and behaving like an imbecile, which he certainly +was not—when his dead body has actually been +found?" +</p> +<p> +"But," I suggested lamely, "there may be some +mistake. It may not be his body after all." +</p> +<p> +"And the ring?" she asked, with a bitter smile. +</p> +<p> +"That may be just a coincidence. It was a copy of +a well-known form of antique ring. Other people may +have had copies made as well as your uncle. Besides," +I added, with more conviction, "we haven't seen the +ring. It may not be his at all." +</p> +<p> +She shook her head. "My dear Paul," she said +quietly, "it is useless to delude ourselves. Every known +fact points to the certainty that it is his body. John +Bellingham is dead: there can be no doubt of that. +And to everyone except his unknown murderer and +one or two of my own loyal friends, it must seem that +his death lies at my door. I realised from the beginning +that the suspicion lay between George Hurst and me; +and the finding of the ring fixes it definitely on me. +I am only surprised that the police have made no move +yet." +</p> +<p> +The quiet conviction of her tone left me for a while +speechless with horror and despair. Then I recalled +Thorndyke's calm, even confident attitude, and I +hastened to remind her of it. +</p> +<p> +"There is one of your friends," I said, "who is still +undismayed. Thorndyke seems to anticipate no difficulties." +</p> +<p> +"And yet," she replied, "he is ready to consider a +forlorn hope like this. However, we shall see." +</p> +<p> +I could think of nothing more to say, and it was in +gloomy silence that we pursued our way down Inner +Temple Lane and through the dark entries and tunnel-like +passages that brought us out, at length, by the +Treasury. +</p> +<p> +"I don't see any light in Thorndyke's chambers," +I said, as we crossed King's Bench Walk; and I pointed +out the row of windows all dark and blank. +</p> +<p> +"No: and yet the shutters are not closed. He must +be out." +</p> +<p> +"He can't be after making an appointment with you +and your father. It is most mysterious. Thorndyke +is so very punctilious about his engagements." +</p> +<p> +The mystery was solved, when we reached the landing, +by a slip of paper fixed by a tack on the iron-bound +"oak." +</p> +<p> +"A note for P.B. is on the table," was the laconic +message: on reading which I inserted my key, swung +the heavy door outward, and opened the lighter inner +door. The note was lying on the table and I brought +it out to the landing to read by the light of the staircase +lamp. +</p> +<p> +"Apologise to our friends," it ran, "for the slight +change of programme. Norbury is anxious that I +should get my experiments over before the Director +returns, so as to save discussion. He has asked me to +begin to-night and says he will see Mr. and Miss Bellingham +here, at the Museum. Please bring them along +at once. The hall porters are instructed to admit you +and bring you to us. I think some matters of importance +may transpire at the interview.—J.E.T." +</p> +<hr> +<p> +"I hope you don't mind," I said apologetically, +when I had read the note to Ruth. +</p> +<p> +"Of course I don't," she replied. "I am rather +pleased. We have so many associations with the dear +old Museum, haven't we?" She looked at me for a +moment with a strange and touching wistfulness and +then turned to descend the stone stairs. +</p> +<p> +At the Temple gate, I hailed a hansom and we were +soon speeding westward and north to the soft tinkle +of the horse's bell. +</p> +<p> +"What are these experiments that Doctor Thorndyke +refers to?" she asked presently. +</p> +<p> +"I can only answer you rather vaguely," I replied. +"Their object, I believe, is to ascertain whether the +penetrability of organic substances by the X-rays becomes +altered by age; whether, for instance, an ancient +block of wood is more or less transparent to the rays +than a new block of the same size." +</p> +<p> +"And of what use would the knowledge be, if it were +obtained?" +</p> +<p> +"I can't say. Experiments are made to obtain +knowledge without regard to its utility. The use appears +when the knowledge has been acquired. But in +this case, if it should be possible to determine the age +of any organic substance by its reaction to X-rays, the +discovery might be of some value in legal practice—as +in demonstrating a new seal on an old document, +for instance. But I don't know whether Thorndyke +has anything definite in view; I only know that the +preparations have been on a most portentous scale." +</p> +<p> +"How do you mean?" +</p> +<p> +"In regard to size. When I went into the workshop +yesterday morning, I found Polton erecting a kind of +portable gallows about nine feet high, and he had just +finished varnishing a pair of enormous wooden trays, +each over six feet long. It looked as if he and Thorndyke +were contemplating a few private executions with +subsequent post-mortems on the victims." +</p> +<p> +"What a horrible suggestion!" +</p> +<p> +"So Polton said, with his quaint, crinkly smile. But +he was mighty close about the use of the apparatus +all the same. I wonder if we shall see anything of the +experiments, when we get there. This is Museum +Street, isn't it?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes." As she spoke, she lifted the flap of one of +the little windows in the back of the cab and peered out. +Then, closing it with a quiet, ironic smile, she said: +</p> +<p> +"It is all right; he hasn't missed us. It will be +quite a nice little change for him." +</p> +<p> +The cab swung round into Great Russell Street, and, +glancing out as it turned, I saw another hansom following; +but before I had time to inspect its solitary +passenger, we drew up at the Museum gates. +The gate-porter, who seemed to expect us, ushered +us up the drive to the great portico and into the +Central Hall, where he handed us over to another +official. +</p> +<p> +"Doctor Norbury is in one of the rooms adjoining +the Fourth Egyptian Room," the latter stated in +answer to our inquiries: and, providing himself with +a wire-guarded lantern, he prepared to escort us +thither. +</p> +<p> +Up the great staircase, now wrapped in mysterious +gloom, we passed in silence with bitter-sweet memories +of that day of days when we had first trodden its steps +together: through the Central Saloon, the Mediaeval +Room and the Asiatic Saloon, and so into the long +range of the Ethnographical Galleries. +</p> +<p> +It was a weird journey. The swaying lantern shot +its beams abroad into the darkness of the great, dim +galleries, casting instantaneous flashes on the objects +in the cases, so that they leaped into being and vanished +in the twinkling of an eye. Hideous idols with round, +staring eyes started forth from the darkness, glared +at us for an instant and were gone. Grotesque masks, +suddenly revealed by the shimmering light, took on the +semblance of demon faces that seemed to mow and +gibber at us as we passed. As for the life-sized models—realistic +enough by daylight—their aspect was positively +alarming; for the moving light and shadow endowed +them with life and movement, so that they seemed +to watch us furtively, to lie in wait and to hold themselves +in readiness to steal out and follow us. The +illusion evidently affected Ruth as well as me, for she +drew nearer to me and whispered: +</p> +<p> +"These figures are quite startling. Did you see that +Polynesian? I really felt as if he were going to spring +out on us." +</p> +<p> +"They are rather uncanny," I admitted, "but the +danger is over now. We are passing out of their sphere +of influence." +</p> +<p> +We came out on a landing as I spoke and then turned +sharply to the left along the North Gallery, from the +centre of which we entered the Fourth Egyptian Room. +</p> +<p> +Almost immediately, a door in the opposite wall +opened; a peculiar, high-pitched humming sound became +audible, and Jervis came out on tiptoe with his +hand raised. +</p> +<p> +"Tread as lightly as you can," he said. "We are +just making an exposure." +</p> +<p> +The attendant turned back with his lantern, and +we followed Jervis into the room from whence he had +come. It was a large room, and little lighter than the +galleries, for the single glow-lamp that burned at the +end where we entered left the rest of the apartment +in almost complete obscurity. We seated ourselves at +once on the chairs that had been placed for us, and, +when the mutual salutations had been exchanged, I +looked about me. There were three people in the room +besides Jervis: Thorndyke, who sat with his watch +in his hand, a grey-headed gentleman whom I took to +be Dr. Norbury, and a smaller person at the dim farther +end—undistinguishable, but probably Polton. At our +end of the room were the two large trays that I had +seen in the workshop, now mounted on trestles and each +fitted with a rubber drain-tube leading down to a +bucket. At the farther end of the room the sinister +shape of the gallows reared itself aloft in the gloom; +only now I could see that it was not a gallows at all. +For affixed to the top cross-bar was a large, bottomless +glass basin, inside which was a glass bulb that +glowed with a strange green light; and in the heart of +the bulb a bright spot of red. +</p> +<p> +It was all clear enough so far. The peculiar sound +that filled the air was the hum of the interrupter; the +bulb was, of course, a Crookes tube, and the red spot +inside it, the glowing red-hot disc of the anti-cathode. +Clearly an X-ray photograph was being made; but +of what? I strained my eyes, peering into the gloom +at the foot of the gallows, but though I could make out +an elongated object lying on the floor directly under +the bulb, I could not resolve the dimly seen shape into +anything recognisable. Presently, however, Dr. Norbury +supplied the clue. +</p> +<p> +"I am rather surprised," said he, "that you chose +so composite an object as a mummy to begin on. I +should have thought that a simpler object, such as a +coffin or a wooden figure, would have been more instructive." +</p> +<p> +"In some ways it would," replied Thorndyke, "but +the variety of materials that the mummy gives us has +its advantages. I hope your father is not ill, Miss +Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"He is not at all well," said Ruth, "and we agreed +that it was better for me to come alone. I knew Herr +Lederbogen quite well. He stayed with us for a time +when he was in England." +</p> +<p> +"I trust," said Dr. Norbury, "that I have not +troubled you for nothing. Herr Lederbogen speaks +of 'our erratic English friend with the long name that +I can never remember,' and it seemed to me that he +might be referring to your uncle." +</p> +<p> +"I should hardly have called my uncle erratic," +said Ruth. +</p> +<p> +"No, no. Certainly not," Dr. Norbury agreed +hastily. "However, you shall see the letter presently +and judge for yourself. We mustn't introduce irrelevant +topics while the experiment is in progress, must +we, Doctor?" +</p> +<p> +"You had better wait until we have finished," said +Thorndyke, "because I am going to turn out the light. +Switch off the current, Polton." +</p> +<p> +The green light vanished from the bulb, the hum +of the interrupter swept down an octave or two and +died away. Then Thorndyke and Dr. Norbury rose +from their chairs and went towards the mummy, which +they lifted tenderly while Polton drew from beneath it +what presently turned out to be a huge black-paper +envelope. The single glow-lamp was switched off, leaving +the room in total darkness, until there burst out +suddenly a bright orange-red light immediately above +one of the trays. +</p> +<p> +We all gathered round to watch, as Polton—the high-priest +of these mysteries—drew from the black envelope +a colossal sheet of bromide paper, laid it carefully in +the tray and proceeded to wet it with a large brush +which he had dipped in a pail of water. +</p> +<p> +"I thought you always used plates for this kind of +work," said Dr. Norbury. +</p> +<p> +"We do, by preference; but a six-foot plate would +be impossible, so I had a special paper made to the size." +</p> +<p> +There is something singularly fascinating in the appearance +of a developing photograph; in the gradual, +mysterious emergence of the picture from the blank, +white surface of plate or paper. But a skiagraph, or +X-ray photograph, has a fascination all its own. Unlike +an ordinary photograph, which yields a picture of +things already seen, it gives a presentment of objects +hitherto invisible; and hence, when Polton poured the +developer on the already wet paper, we all craned +over the tray with the keenest curiosity. +</p> +<p> +The developer was evidently a very slow one. For +fully half a minute no change could be seen in the +uniform surface. Then, gradually, almost insensibly, +the marginal portion began to darken, leaving the +outline of the mummy in pale relief. The change, once +started, proceeded apace. Darker and darker grew +the margin of the paper until from slaty grey it had +turned to black; and still the shape of the mummy, +now in strong relief, remained an elongated patch of +bald white. But not for long. Presently the white +shape began to be tinged with grey, and, as the colour +deepened, there grew out of it a paler form that seemed +to steal out of the enshrouding grey like an apparition, +spectral, awesome, mysterious. The skeleton was coming +into view. +</p> +<p> +"It is rather uncanny," said Dr. Norbury. "I feel +as if I were assisting at some unholy rite. Just look +at it now!" +</p> +<p> +The grey shadow of the cartonnage, the wrappings +and the flesh was fading away into the black background +and the white skeleton stood out in sharp contrast. +And it certainly was a rather weird spectacle. +</p> +<p> +"You'll lose the bones if you develop much farther," +said Dr. Norbury. +</p> +<p> +"I must let the bones darken," Thorndyke replied, +"in case there are any metallic objects. I have three +more papers in the envelope." +</p> +<p> +The white shape of the skeleton now began to grey +over and, as Dr. Norbury had said, its distinctness +became less and yet less. Thorndyke leaned over the +tray with his eyes fixed on a point in the middle of the +breast and we all watched him in silence. Suddenly +he rose. "Now, Polton," he said sharply; "get the +hypo on as quickly as you can." +</p> +<p> +Polton, who had been waiting with his hand on the +stop-cock of the drain-tube, rapidly ran off the developer +into the bucket and flooded the paper with the +fixing solution. +</p> +<p> +"Now we can look at it at our leisure," said Thorndyke. +After waiting a few seconds, he switched on one +of the glow-lamps, and as the flood of light fell on the +photograph, he added: "You see we haven't quite lost +the skeleton." +</p> +<p> +"No." Dr. Norbury put on a pair of spectacles and +bent down over the tray; and at this moment I felt +Ruth's hand touch my arm, lightly, at first, and then +with a strong, nervous grasp; and I could feel that her +hand was trembling. I looked round at her anxiously +and saw that she had turned deathly pale. +</p> +<p> +"Would you rather go out into the gallery?" I +asked; for the room with its tightly shut windows was +close and hot. +</p> +<p> +"No," she replied quietly, "I will stay here. I am +quite well." But still she kept hold of my arm. +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke glanced at her keenly and then looked +away as Dr. Norbury turned to him to ask a question. +</p> +<p> +"Why is it, think you, that some of the teeth show +so much whiter than others?" +</p> +<p> +"I think the whiteness of the shadows is due to the +presence of metal," Thorndyke replied. +</p> +<p> +"Do you mean that the teeth have metal fillings?" +asked Dr. Norbury. +</p> +<p> +"Yes." +</p> +<p> +"Really! This is very interesting. The use of gold +stoppings—and artificial teeth, too—by the ancient +Egyptians is well known, but we have no examples +in the Museum. This mummy ought to be unrolled. +Do you think all those teeth are filled with the same +metal? They are not equally white." +</p> +<p> +"No," replied Thorndyke. "Those teeth that are +perfectly white are undoubtedly filled with gold, but +that greyish one is probably filled with tin." +</p> +<p> +"Very interesting," said Dr. Norbury. "<i>Very</i> +interesting! And what do you make of that faint mark +across the chest, near the top of the sternum?" +</p> +<p> +It was Ruth who answered his question. +</p> +<p> +"It is the Eye of Osiris!" she exclaimed, in a hushed +voice. +</p> +<p> +"Dear me!" exclaimed Dr. Norbury, "so it is. +You are quite right. It is the Utchat—the Eye of +Horus—or Osiris, if you prefer to call it so. That, I +presume, will be a gilded device on some of the wrappings." +</p> +<p> +"No: I should say it is a tattoo mark. It is too +indefinite for a gilded device. And I should say further +that the tattooing is done in vermilion, as carbon +tattooing would cast no visible shadow." +</p> +<p> +"I think you must be mistaken about that," said +Dr. Norbury, "but we shall see, if the Director allows +us to unroll the mummy. By the way, those little +objects in front of the knees are metallic, I suppose?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, they are metallic. But they are not in front +of the knees; they are <i>in</i> the knees. They are pieces +of silver wire which have been used to repair fractured +knee-caps." +</p> +<p> +"Are you sure of that?" exclaimed Dr. Norbury, +peering at the little white marks with ecstasy; "because, +if you are, and if these objects are what you say +they are, the mummy of Sebek-hotep is an absolutely +unique specimen." +</p> +<p> +"I am quite certain of it," said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Then," said Dr. Norbury, "we have made a discovery, +thanks to your inquiring spirit. Poor John +Bellingham! He little knew what a treasure he was +giving us! How I wish he could have known! How +I wish he could have been here with us to-night!" +</p> +<p> +He paused once more to gaze in rapture at the photograph. +And then Thorndyke, in his quiet, impassive +way, said: +</p> +<p> +"John Bellingham is here, Doctor Norbury. This +is John Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +Dr. Norbury started back and stared at Thorndyke +in speechless amazement. +</p> +<p> +"You don't mean," he exclaimed, after a long pause, +"that this mummy is the body of John Bellingham!" +</p> +<p> +"I do, indeed. There is no doubt of it." +</p> +<p> +"But it is impossible! The mummy was here in the +gallery a full three weeks before he disappeared." +</p> +<p> +"Not so," said Thorndyke. "John Bellingham was +last seen alive by you and Mr. Jellicoe on the fourteenth +of October, more than three weeks before the mummy +left Queen Square. After that date he was never seen +alive or dead by any person who knew him and could +identify him." +</p> +<p> +Dr. Norbury reflected awhile in silence. Then, in +a faint voice, he asked: "How do you suggest that +John Bellingham's body came to be inside that cartonnage?" +</p> +<p> +"I think Mr. Jellicoe is the most likely person to +be able to answer that question," Thorndyke replied +drily. +</p> +<p> +There was another interval of silence, and then Dr. +Norbury asked suddenly: +</p> +<p> +"But what do you suppose has become of Sebek-hotep? +The real Sebek-hotep, I mean?" +</p> +<p> +"I take it," said Thorndyke, "that the remains of +Sebek-hotep, or at least a portion of them, are at +present lying in the Woodford mortuary awaiting an +adjourned inquest." +</p> +<p> +As Thorndyke made this statement a flash of belated +intelligence, mingled with self-contempt, fell on me. +Now that the explanation was given, how obvious it +was! And yet I, a competent anatomist and physiologist +and actually a pupil of Thorndyke's, had mistaken +those ancient bones for the remains of a recent +body! +</p> +<p> +Dr. Norbury considered the last statement for some +time in evident perplexity. "It is all consistent enough, +I must admit," said he, at length, "and yet—are you +quite sure there is no mistake? It seems so incredible." +</p> +<p> +"There is no mistake, I assure you," Thorndyke +answered. "To convince you, I will give you the facts +in detail. First, as to the teeth. I have seen John +Bellingham's dentist and obtained particulars from +his case-book. There were in all five teeth that had +been filled. The right upper wisdom-tooth, the molar +next to it, and the second lower molar on the left side, +had all extensive gold fillings. You can see them all +quite plainly in the skiagraph. The left lower lateral +incisor had a very small gold filling, which you can see +as a nearly circular white dot. In addition to these, a +filling of tin amalgam had been inserted while the +deceased was abroad, in the second left upper bicuspid, +the rather grey spot that we have already noticed. +These would, by themselves, furnish ample means of +identification. But in addition, there is the tattooed +device of the Eye of Osiris—" +</p> +<p> +"Horus," murmured Dr. Norbury. +</p> +<p> +"Horus, then—in the exact locality in which it was +borne by the deceased and tattooed, apparently, with +the same pigment. There are, further, the suture wires +in the knee-caps; Sir Morgan Bennet, having looked +up the notes of the operation, informs me that he +introduced three suture wires into the left patella and +two into the right; which is what the skiagraph shows. +Lastly, the deceased had an old Pott's fracture on +the left side. It is not very apparent now, but I saw +it quite distinctly just now when the shadows of the +bones were whiter. I think that you may take it that +the identification is beyond all doubt or question." +</p> +<p> +"Yes," agreed Dr. Norbury, with gloomy resignation, +"it sounds, as you say, quite conclusive. Well, +well, it is a most horrible affair. Poor old John Bellingham! +It looks uncommonly as if he had met with foul +play. Don't you think so?" +</p> +<p> +"I do," replied Thorndyke. "There was a mark +on the right side of the skull that looked rather like a +fracture. It was not very clear, being at the side, but +we must develop up the next negative to show it." +</p> +<p> +Dr. Norbury drew his breath in sharply through his +teeth. "This is a gruesome business, Doctor," said he. +"A terrible business. Awkward for our people, too. +By the way, what is our position in the matter? What +steps ought we to take?" +</p> +<p> +"You should give notice to the coroner—I will +manage the police—and you should communicate with +one of the executors of the will." +</p> +<p> +"Mr. Jellicoe?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not Mr. Jellicoe, under the peculiar circumstances. +You had better write to Mr. Godfrey Bellingham." +</p> +<p> +"But I rather understood that Mr. Hurst was the +co-executor," said Dr. Norbury. +</p> +<p> +"He is surely, as matters stand," said Jervis. +</p> +<p> +"Not at all," replied Thorndyke. "He <i>was</i> as +matters <i>stood</i>; but he is not now. You are forgetting +the conditions of clause two. That clause sets forth +the conditions under which Godfrey Bellingham shall +inherit the bulk of the estate and become the co-executor; +and those conditions are: 'that the body of +the testator shall be deposited in some authorised place +for the reception of the bodies of the dead, situate +within the boundaries of, or appertaining to some place +of worship within, the parish of St. George, Bloomsbury, +and St. Giles in the Fields or St. Andrew above +the Bars and St. George the Martyr.' Now Egyptian +mummies are the bodies of the dead, and this Museum +is an authorised place for their reception; and this +building is situate within the boundaries of the parish +of St. George, Bloomsbury. Therefore the provisions +of clause two have been duly carried out and therefore +Godfrey Bellingham is the principal beneficiary under +the will, and the co-executor, in accordance with the +wishes of the testator. Is that quite clear?" +</p> +<p> +"Perfectly," said Dr. Norbury; "and a most astonishing +coincidence—but, my dear young lady, had you +not better sit down? You are looking very ill." +</p> +<p> +He glanced anxiously at Ruth, who was pale to the +lips and was now leaning heavily on my arm. +</p> +<p> +"I think, Berkeley," said Thorndyke, "you had +better take Miss Bellingham out into the gallery, where +there is more air. This has been a tremendous climax +to all the trials that she has borne so bravely. Go out +with Berkeley," he added gently, laying his hand on +her shoulder, "and sit down while we develop the other +negatives. You mustn't break down now, you know, +when the storm has passed and the sun is beginning +to shine." He held the door open, and as we passed +out his face softened into a smile of infinite kindness. +"You won't mind my locking you out," said he; "this +is a photographic dark-room at present." +</p> +<p> +The key grated in the lock and we turned away into +the dim gallery. It was not quite dark, for a beam +of moonlight filtered in here and there through the +blinds that covered the sky-lights. We walked on +slowly, her arm linked in mine, and for a while neither +of us spoke. The great rooms were very silent and +peaceful and solemn. The hush, the stillness, the +mystery of the half-seen forms in the cases around, +were all in harmony with the deeply-felt sense of a +great deliverance that filled our hearts. +</p> +<p> +We had passed through into the next room before +either of us broke the silence. Insensibly our hands +had crept together, and as they met and clasped with +mutual pressure, Ruth exclaimed: "How dreadful and +tragic it is! Poor, poor Uncle John! It seems as if +he had come back from the world of shadows to tell +us of this awful thing. But, O God! what a relief +it is!" She caught her breath in one or two quick +sobs and pressed my hand passionately. +</p> +<p> +"It is over, dearest," I said. "It is gone for ever. +Nothing remains but the memory of your sorrow and +your noble courage and patience." +</p> +<p> +"I can't realise it yet," she murmured. "It has +been like a frightful, interminable dream." +</p> +<p> +"Let us put it away," said I, "and think only of +the happy life that is opening." +</p> +<p> +She made no reply, and only a quick catch in her +breath, now and again, told of the long agony that she +had endured with such heroic calm. +</p> +<p> +We walked on slowly, scarcely disturbing the silence +with our soft foot-falls, through the wide doorway into +the second room. The vague shapes of the mummy-cases +standing erect in the wall-cases, loomed out dim +and gigantic, silent watchers keeping their vigil with +the memories of untold centuries locked in their shadowy +breasts. They were an awesome company. Reverend +survivors from a vanished world, they looked out +from the gloom of their abiding-place, but with no +shade of menace or of malice in their silent presence; +rather with a solemn benison on the fleeting creatures +of to-day. +</p> +<p> +Half-way along the room a ghostly figure, somewhat +aloof from its companions, showed a dim, pallid blotch +where its face would have been. With one accord we +halted before it. +</p> +<p> +"Do you know who it is, Ruth?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Of course I do," she answered. "It is Artemidorus." +</p> +<p> +We stood, hand in hand, facing the mummy, letting +our memories fill in the vague silhouette with its well-remembered +details. Presently I drew her nearer to +me and whispered: +</p> +<p> +"Ruth! do you remember when we last stood here?" +</p> +<p> +"As if I could ever forget!" she answered passionately. +"Oh, Paul! The sorrow of it! The misery! +How it wrung my heart to tell you! Were you <i>very</i> +unhappy when I left you?" +</p> +<p> +"Unhappy! I never knew, until then, what real, +heart-breaking sorrow was. It seemed as if the light +had gone out of my life for ever. But there was just +one little spot of brightness left." +</p> +<p> +"What was that?" +</p> +<p> +"You made me a promise, dear—a solemn promise; +and I felt—at least I hoped—that the day would come, +if I only waited patiently, when you would be able to +redeem it." +</p> +<p> +She crept closer to me and yet closer, until her head +nestled on my shoulder and her soft cheek lay against +mine. +</p> +<p> +"Dear heart," I whispered, "is it now? Is the time +fulfilled?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, dearest," she murmured softly. "It is now—and +for ever." +</p> +<p> +Reverently I folded her in my arms; gathered her +to the heart that worshipped her utterly. Henceforth +no sorrows could hurt us, no misfortunes vex; for we +should walk hand in hand on our earthly pilgrimage +and find the way all too short. +</p> +<p> +Time, whose sands run out with such unequal swiftness +for the just and the unjust, the happy and the +wretched, lagged, no doubt, with the toilers in the room +that we had left. But for us its golden grains trickled +out apace and left the glass empty before we had begun +to mark their passage. The turning of a key and the +opening of a door aroused us from our dream of perfect +happiness. Ruth raised her head to listen, and our +lips met for one brief moment. Then, with a silent +greeting to the friend who had looked on our grief and +witnessed our final happiness, we turned and retraced +our steps quickly, filling the great, empty rooms with +chattering echoes. +</p> +<p> +"We won't go back into the dark-room—which +isn't dark now," said Ruth. +</p> +<p> +"Why not?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"Because—when I came out I was very pale; and +I'm—well, I don't think I am very pale now. Besides, +poor Uncle John is in there—and—I should be ashamed +to look at him with my selfish heart overflowing with +happiness." +</p> +<p> +"You needn't be," said I. "It is the day of our +lives and we have a right to be happy. But you shan't +go in, if you don't wish to," and I accordingly steered +her adroitly past the beam of light that streamed from +the open door. +</p> +<p> +"We have developed four negatives," said Thorndyke, +as he emerged with the others, "and I am leaving +them in the custody of Doctor Norbury, who will sign +each when they are dry, as they may have to be put +in evidence. What are you going to do?" +</p> +<p> +I looked at Ruth to see what she wished. +</p> +<p> +"If you won't think me ungrateful," said she, "I +should rather be alone with my father to-night. He +is very weak, and—" +</p> +<p> +"Yes, I understand," I said hastily. And I did. +Mr. Bellingham was a man of strong emotions and +would probably be somewhat overcome by the sudden +change of fortune and the news of his brother's tragic +death. +</p> +<p> +"In that case," said Thorndyke, "I will bespeak +your services. Will you go on and wait for me +at my chambers, when you have seen Miss Bellingham +home?" +</p> +<p> +I agreed to this, and we set forth under the guidance +of Dr. Norbury (who carried an electric lamp) to return +by the way we had come; two of us, at least, in +a vastly different frame of mind. The party broke up +at the entrance gates, and as Thorndyke wished my +companion "Good night," she held his hand and looked +up in his face with swimming eyes. +</p> +<p> +"I haven't thanked you, Doctor Thorndyke," she +said, "and I don't feel that I ever can. What you +have done for me and my father is beyond all thanks. +You have saved his life and you have rescued me from +the most horrible ignominy. Good-bye! and God bless +you!" +</p> +<p> +The hansom that bowled along eastward—at most +unnecessary speed—bore two of the happiest human +beings within the wide boundaries of the town. I looked +at my companion as the lights of the street shone into +the cab, and was astonished at the transformation. +The pallor of her cheek had given place to a rosy pink; +the hardness, the tension, the haggard self-repression +that had aged her face, were all gone, and the girlish +sweetness that had so bewitched me in the early days +of our love had stolen back. Even the dimple was +there when the sweeping lashes lifted and her eyes met +mine in a smile of infinite tenderness. Little was said +on that brief journey. It was happiness enough to +sit, hand clasped in hand, and know that our time of +trial was past; that no cross of Fate could ever part +us now. +</p> +<p> +The astonished cabman set us down, according to +instructions, at the entrance to Nevill's Court, and +watched us with open mouth as we vanished into the +narrow passage. The court had settled down for the +night, and no one marked our return; no curious eye +looked down on us from the dark house-front as we +said "Good-bye" just inside the gate. +</p> +<p> +"You will come and see us to-morrow, dear, won't +you?" she asked. +</p> +<p> +"Do you think it possible that I could stay away, +then?" +</p> +<p> +"I hope not. But come as early as you can. My +father will be positively frantic to see you; because +I shall have told him, you know. And, remember, that +it is you who have brought us this great deliverance. +Good night, Paul." +</p> +<p> +"Good night, sweetheart." +</p> +<p> +She put up her face frankly to be kissed and then +ran up to the ancient door; whence she waved me a +last good-bye. The shabby gate in the wall closed +behind me and hid her from my sight; but the light +of her love went with me and turned the dull street +into a path of glory. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH19"><!-- CH19 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XIX +</h2> + +<h3> +A STRANGE SYMPOSIUM +</h3> +<p> +It came upon me with something of a shock of surprise +to find the scrap of paper still tacked to the oak of +Thorndyke's chambers. So much had happened since I +had last looked on it that it seemed to belong to another +epoch of my life. I removed it thoughtfully and picked +out the tack before entering, and then, closing the +inner door, but leaving the oak open, I lit the gas and +fell to pacing the room. +</p> +<p> +What a wonderful episode it had been! How the +whole aspect of the world had been changed in a moment +by Thorndyke's revelation! At another time, +curiosity would have led me to endeavour to trace back +the train of reasoning by which the subtle brain of my +teacher had attained this astonishing conclusion. But +now my own happiness held exclusive possession of my +thoughts. The image of Ruth filled the field of my +mental vision. I saw her again as I had seen her in +the cab with her sweet, pensive face and downcast eyes; +I felt again the touch of her soft cheek and the parting +kiss by the gate, so frank and simple, so intimate and +final. +</p> +<p> +I must have waited quite a long time, though the +golden minutes sped unreckoned, for when my two +colleagues arrived they tendered needless apologies. +</p> +<p> +"And I suppose," said Thorndyke, "you have been +wondering what I wanted you for." +</p> +<p> +I had not, as a matter of fact, given the matter a +moment's consideration. +</p> +<p> +"We are going to call on Mr. Jellicoe," Thorndyke +explained. "There is something behind this affair, +and until I have ascertained what it is, the case is not +complete from my point of view." +</p> +<p> +"Wouldn't it have done as well to-morrow?" I +asked. +</p> +<p> +"It might; and then it might not. There is an old +saying as to catching a weasel asleep. Mr. Jellicoe is +a somewhat wide-awake person, and I think it best to +introduce him to Inspector Badger at the earliest possible +moment." +</p> +<p> +"The meeting of a weasel and a badger suggests a +sporting interview," remarked Jervis. "But you don't +expect Jellicoe to give himself away, do you?" +</p> +<p> +"He can hardly do that, seeing that there is nothing +to give away. But I think he may make a statement. +There were some exceptional circumstances, I feel +sure." +</p> +<p> +"How long have you known that the body was in +the Museum?" I asked. +</p> +<p> +"About thirty or forty seconds longer than you +have, I should say." +</p> +<p> +"Do you mean," I exclaimed, "that you didn't +know until the negative was developed?" +</p> +<p> +"My dear fellow," he replied, "do you suppose that, +if I had had certain knowledge where the body was, I +should have allowed that noble girl to go on dragging +out a lingering agony of suspense that I could have cut +short in a moment? Or that I should have made these +humbugging pretences of scientific experiments if a +more dignified course had been open to me?" +</p> +<p> +"As to the experiments," said Jervis, "Norbury +could hardly have refused if you had taken him into +your confidence." +</p> +<p> +"Indeed he could, and probably would. My 'confidence' +would have involved a charge of murder against +a highly respectable gentleman who was well known to +him. He would probably have referred me to the police, +and then what could I have done? I had plenty of +suspicions, but not a single solid fact." +</p> +<p> +Our discussion was here interrupted by hurried footsteps +on the stairs and a thundering rat-tat on our +knocker. +</p> +<p> +As Jervis opened the door, Inspector Badger burst +into the room in a highly excited state. +</p> +<p> +"What is all this, Doctor Thorndyke?" he asked. +"I see you've sworn an information against Mr. Jellicoe, +and I have a warrant to arrest him; but before anything +is done I think it right to tell you that we have +more evidence than is generally known pointing to +quite a different quarter." +</p> +<p> +"Derived from Mr. Jellicoe's information," said +Thorndyke. "But the fact is that I have just examined +and identified the body at the British Museum, +where it was deposited by Mr. Jellicoe. I don't say +that he murdered John Bellingham—though that is +what the appearances suggest—but I do say that he +will have to account for his secret disposal of the +body." +</p> +<p> +Inspector Badger was thunderstruck. Also he was +visibly annoyed. The salt which Mr. Jellicoe had so +adroitly sprinkled on the constabulary tail appeared +to develop irritating properties, for when Thorndyke +had given him a brief outline of the facts he stuck his +hands in his pockets and exclaimed gloomily: +</p> +<p> +"Well, I'm hanged! And to think of all the time +and trouble I've spent on those damned bones! I suppose +they were just a plant?" +</p> +<p> +"Don't let us disparage them," said Thorndyke. +"They have played a useful part. They represent the +inevitable mistake that every criminal makes sooner or +later. The murderer will always do a little too much. +If he would only lie low and let well alone, the detective +might whistle for a clue. But it is time we were starting." +</p> +<p> +"Are we all going?" asked the inspector, looking +at me in particular with no very gracious recognition. +</p> +<p> +"We will all come with you," said Thorndyke; "but +you will, naturally, make the arrest in the way that +seems best to you." +</p> +<p> +"It's a regular procession," grumbled the inspector; +but he made no more definite objection, and we started +forth on our quest. +</p> +<p> +The distance from the Temple to Lincoln's Inn is +not great. In five minutes we were at the gateway in +Chancery Lane, and a couple of minutes later saw us +gathered round the threshold of the stately old house +in New Square. +</p> +<p> +"Seems to be a light in the first floor front," said +Badger. "You'd better move away before I ring the +bell." +</p> +<p> +But the precaution was unnecessary. As the inspector +advanced to the bell-pull a head was thrust out of +the open window immediately above the street door. +</p> +<p> +"Who are you?" inquired the owner of the head +in a voice which I recognised as that of Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"I am Inspector Badger, of the Criminal Investigation +Department. I wish to see Mr. Arthur Jellicoe." +</p> +<p> +"Then look at me. I am Mr. Arthur Jellicoe." +</p> +<p> +"I hold a warrant for your arrest, Mr. Jellicoe. You +are charged with the murder of Mr. John Bellingham, +whose body has just been discovered in the British +Museum." +</p> +<p> +"By whom?" +</p> +<p> +"By Doctor Thorndyke." +</p> +<p> +"Indeed," said Mr. Jellicoe. "Is he here?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes." +</p> +<p> +"Ha! And you wish to arrest me, I presume?" +</p> +<p> +"Yes. That is what I am here for." +</p> +<p> +"Well, I will agree to surrender myself subject to +certain conditions." +</p> +<p> +"I can't make any conditions, Mr. Jellicoe." +</p> +<p> +"No. I will make them, and you will accept them. +Otherwise you will not arrest me." +</p> +<p> +"It's no use for you to talk like that," said Badger. +"If you don't let me in I shall have to break in. And +I may as well tell you," he added mendaciously, "that +the house is surrounded." +</p> +<p> +"You may accept my assurance," Mr. Jellicoe replied +calmly, "that you will not arrest me if you do +not accept my conditions." +</p> +<p> +"Well, what are your conditions?" demanded +Badger impatiently. +</p> +<p> +"I desire to make a statement," said Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"You can do that, but I must caution you that +anything you say may be used in evidence against +you." +</p> +<p> +"Naturally. But I wish to make the statement in +the presence of Doctor Thorndyke, and I desire to hear +a statement from him of the method of investigation +by which he discovered the whereabouts of the body. +That is to say, if he is willing." +</p> +<p> +"If you mean that we should mutually enlighten +one another, I am very willing indeed," said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Very well. Then my conditions, Inspector, are +that I shall hear Doctor Thorndyke's statement and +that I shall be permitted to make a statement myself, +and that until those statements are completed, with +any necessary interrogation and discussion, I shall remain +at liberty and shall suffer no molestation or interference +of any kind. And I agree that, on the conclusion +of the said proceedings, I will submit without resistance +to any course that you may adopt." +</p> +<p> +"I can't agree to that," said Badger. +</p> +<p> +"Can't you?" said Mr. Jellicoe coldly; and, after +a pause, he added: "Don't be hasty. I have given +you full warning." +</p> +<p> +There was something in Mr. Jellicoe's passionless +tone that disturbed the inspector exceedingly, for he +turned to Thorndyke and said in a low tone: +</p> +<p> +"I wonder what his game is? He can't get away, +you know." +</p> +<p> +"There are several possibilities," said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"M'yes," said Badger, stroking his chin perplexedly. +</p> +<p> +"After all, is there any objection? His statement +might save trouble, and you'd be on the safe side. It +would take you some time to break in." +</p> +<p> +"Well," said Mr. Jellicoe, with his hand on the +window, "do you agree—yes or no?" +</p> +<p> +"All right," said Badger sulkily. "I agree." +</p> +<p> +"You promise not to molest me in any way until I +have quite finished?" +</p> +<p> +"I promise." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Jellicoe's head disappeared and the window +closed. After a short interval we heard the jar of +massive bolts and the clank of a chain, and, as the +heavy door swung open, Mr. Jellicoe stood revealed, +calm and impassive, with an old-fashioned office candlestick +in his hand. +</p> +<p> +"Who are the others?" he inquired, peering out +sharply through his spectacles. +</p> +<p> +"O, they are nothing to do with me," replied +Badger. +</p> +<p> +"They are Doctor Berkeley and Doctor Jervis," +said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Ha!" said Mr. Jellicoe; "very kind and attentive +of them to call. Pray come in, gentlemen. I am sure +you will be interested to hear our little discussion." +</p> +<p> +He held the door open with a certain stiff courtesy, +and we all entered the hall led by Inspector Badger. +He closed the door softly and preceded us up the stairs +and into the apartment from the window of which he +had dictated the terms of surrender. It was a fine old +room, spacious, lofty, and dignified, with panelled walls +and a carved mantelpiece, the central escutcheon of +which bore the initials "J.W.P." with the date +"1671." A large writing-table stood at the farther +end, and behind it an iron safe. +</p> +<p> +"I have been expecting this visit," Mr. Jellicoe remarked +tranquilly as he placed four chairs opposite the +table. +</p> +<p> +"Since when?" asked Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Since last Monday evening, when I had the pleasure +of seeing you conversing with my friend Doctor Berkeley +at the Inner Temple gate, and then inferred that +you were retained in the case. That was a circumstance +that had not been fully provided for. May I +offer you gentlemen a glass of sherry?" As he spoke +he placed on the table a decanter and a tray of glasses, +and looked at us interrogatively with his hand on the +stopper. +</p> +<p> +"Well, I don't mind if I do, Mr. Jellicoe," said +Badger, on whom the lawyer's glance had finally +settled. Mr. Jellicoe filled a glass and handed it to +him with a stiff bow; then, with the decanter still in his +hand, he said persuasively: "Doctor Thorndyke, pray +allow me to fill you a glass?" +</p> +<p> +"No, thank you," said Thorndyke, in a tone so decided +that the inspector looked round at him quickly. +And as Badger caught his eye, the glass which he was +about to raise to his lips became suddenly arrested and +was slowly returned to the table untasted. +</p> +<p> +"I don't want to hurry you, Mr. Jellicoe," said the +inspector, "but it's rather late, and I should like to +get this business settled. What is it that you wish +to do?" +</p> +<p> +"I desire," replied Mr. Jellicoe, "to make a detailed +statement of the events that have happened, and I +wish to hear from Doctor Thorndyke precisely how he +arrived at his very remarkable conclusion. When this +has been done I shall be entirely at your service; and +I suggest that it would be more interesting if Doctor +Thorndyke would give us his statement before I furnish +you with the actual facts." +</p> +<p> +"I am entirely of your opinion," said Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"Then in that case," said Mr. Jellicoe, "I suggest +that you disregard me, and address your remarks to +your friends as if I were not present." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke acquiesced with a bow, and Mr. Jellicoe, +having seated himself in his elbow-chair behind the +table, poured himself out a glass of water, selected a +cigarette from a neat silver case, lighted it deliberately, +and leaned back to listen at his ease. +</p> +<p> +"My first acquaintance with this case," Thorndyke +began without preamble, "was made through the +medium of the daily papers about two years ago; and +I may say that, although I had no interest in it beyond +the purely academic interest of a specialist in a case +that lies in his particular specialty, I considered it with +deep attention. The newspaper reports contained no +particulars of the relations of the parties that could +furnish any hints as to motives on the part of any of +them, but merely a bare statement of the events. And +this was a distinct advantage, inasmuch as it left one +to consider the facts of the case without regard to +motive—to balance the <i>prima facie</i> probabilities with +an open mind. And it may surprise you to learn that +those <i>prima facie</i> probabilities pointed from the very +first to that solution which has been put to the test of +experiment this evening. Hence it will be well for me +to begin by giving the conclusions that I reached by +reasoning from the facts set forth in the newspapers +before any of the further facts came to my knowledge. +</p> +<p> +"From the facts as stated in the newspaper reports +it is obvious that there were four possible explanations +of the disappearance. +</p> +<p> +"1. The man might be alive and in hiding. This +was highly improbable, for the reasons that were stated +by Mr. Loram at the late hearing of the application, +and for a further reason that I shall mention presently. +</p> +<p> +"2. He might have died by accident or disease, and +his body failed to be identified. This was even more +improbable, seeing that he carried on his person abundant +means of identification, including visiting cards. +</p> +<p> +"3. He might have been murdered by some stranger +for the sake of his portable property. This was highly +improbable for the same reason: his body could hardly +have failed to be identified. +</p> +<p> +"These three explanations are what we may call the +outside explanations. They touched none of the parties +mentioned; they were all obviously improbable on general +grounds; and to all of them there was one conclusive +answer—the scarab which was found in Godfrey +Bellingham's garden. Hence I put them aside and +gave my attention to the fourth explanation. This +was that the missing man had been made away with by +one of the parties mentioned in the report. But, since +the reports mentioned three parties, it was evident that +there was a choice of three hypotheses, namely: +</p> +<p> +"(<i>a</i>) That John Bellingham had been made away +with by Hurst; or (<i>b</i>) by the Bellinghams; or (<i>c</i>) by +Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"Now, I have constantly impressed on my pupils +that the indispensable question that must be asked at +the outset of such an inquiry as this is, 'When was the +missing person last undoubtedly seen or known to be +alive?' That is the question that I asked myself after +reading the newspaper report; and the answer was, +that he was last certainly seen alive on the fourteenth +of October, nineteen hundred and two, at 141 Queen +Square, Bloomsbury. Of the fact that he was alive +at that time and place there could be no doubt whatever; +for he was seen at the same moment by two +persons, both of whom were intimately acquainted with +him, and one of whom, Doctor Norbury, was apparently +a disinterested witness. After that date he was never +seen, alive or dead, by any person who knew him and +was able to identify him. It was stated that he had +been seen on the twenty-third of November following +by the housemaid of Mr. Hurst; but as this person +was unacquainted with him, it was uncertain whether +the person whom she saw was or was not John Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"Hence the disappearance dated, not from the +twenty-third of November, as everyone seems to have +assumed, but from the fourteenth of October; and the +question was not, 'What became of John Bellingham +after he entered Mr. Hurst's house?' but, 'What became +of him after his interview in Queen Square?' +</p> +<p> +"But as soon as I had decided that that interview +must form the real starting-point of the inquiry, a most +striking set of circumstances came into view. It became +obvious that if Mr. Jellicoe had had any reason +for wishing to make away with John Bellingham, he +had such an opportunity as seldom falls to the lot of +an intending murderer. +</p> +<p> +"Just consider the conditions. John Bellingham was +known to be setting out alone upon a journey beyond +the sea. His exact destination was not stated. He +was to be absent for an undetermined period, but at +least three weeks. His disappearance would occasion +no comment; his absence would lead to no inquiries, +at least for several weeks, during which the murderer +would have leisure quietly to dispose of the body and +conceal all traces of the crime. The conditions were, +from a murderer's point of view, ideal. +</p> +<p> +"But that was not all. During that very period of +John Bellingham's absence Mr. Jellicoe was engaged to +deliver to the British Museum what was admittedly a +dead human body; and that body was to be enclosed +in a sealed case. Could any more perfect or secure +method of disposing of a body be devised by the most +ingenious murderer? The plan would have had only +one weak point: the mummy would be known to have +left Queen Square <i>after</i> the disappearance of John +Bellingham, and suspicion might in the end have arisen. +To this point I shall return presently; meanwhile we +will consider the second hypothesis—that the missing +man was made away with by Mr. Hurst. +</p> +<p> +"Now, there seemed to be no doubt that some person, +purporting to be John Bellingham, did actually visit +Mr. Hurst's house; and he must either have left that +house or remained in it. If he left, he did so surreptitiously; +if he remained, there could be no reasonable +doubt that he had been murdered and that his body +had been concealed. Let us consider the probabilities +in each case. +</p> +<p> +"Assuming—as everyone seems to have done—that +the visitor was really John Bellingham, we are dealing +with a responsible, middle-aged gentleman, and the idea +that such a person would enter a house, announce his +intention of staying, and then steal away unobserved +is very difficult to accept. Moreover, he would appear +to have come down to Eltham by rail immediately on +landing in England, leaving his luggage in the cloak-room +at Charing Cross. This pointed to a definiteness +of purpose quite inconsistent with his casual disappearance +from the house. +</p> +<p> +"On the other hand, the idea that he might have +been murdered by Hurst was not inconceivable. The +thing was physically possible. If Bellingham had really +been in the study when Hurst came home, the murder +could have been committed—by appropriate means—and +the body temporarily concealed in the cupboard or +elsewhere. But, although possible, it was not at all +probable. There was no real opportunity. The risk +and the subsequent difficulties would be very great; +there was not a particle of positive evidence that a +murder had occurred; and the conduct of Hurst in +immediately leaving the house in possession of the servants +is quite inconsistent with the supposition that there +was a body concealed in it. So that, while it is almost +impossible to believe that John Bellingham left the +house of his own accord, it is equally difficult to believe +that he did not leave it. +</p> +<p> +"But there is a third possibility, which, strange to +say, no one seems to have suggested. Supposing that +the visitor was not John Bellingham at all, but someone +who was personating him? That would dispose of +the difficulties completely. The strange disappearance +ceases to be strange, for a personator would necessarily +make off before Mr. Hurst should arrive and discover +the imposture. But if we accept this supposition, we +raise two further questions: 'Who was the personator?' +and 'What was the object of the personation?' +</p> +<p> +"Now, the personator was clearly not Hurst himself, +for he would have been recognised by his housemaid; +he was therefore either Godfrey Bellingham or +Mr. Jellicoe or some other person; and as no other +person was mentioned in the newspaper reports I confined +my speculations to these two. +</p> +<p> +"And, first, as to Godfrey Bellingham. It did not +appear whether he was or was not known to the housemaid, +so I assumed—wrongly, as it turns out—that he +was not. Then he might have been the personator. +But why should he have personated his brother? He +could not have already committed the murder. There +had not been time enough. He would have had to leave +Woodford before John Bellingham had set out from +Charing Cross. And even if he had committed the +murder, he would have had no object in raising this +commotion. His cue would have been to remain quiet +and know nothing. The probabilities were all against +the personator being Godfrey Bellingham. +</p> +<p> +"Then could it be Mr. Jellicoe? The answer to this +question is contained in the answer to the further +question: What could have been the object of the +personation? +</p> +<p> +"What motive could this unknown person have had +in appearing, announcing himself as John Bellingham, +and forthwith vanishing? There could only have been +one motive: that, namely, of fixing the date of John +Bellingham's disappearance—of furnishing a definite +moment at which he was last seen alive. +</p> +<p> +"But who was likely to have had such a motive? +Let us see. +</p> +<p> +"I said just now that if Mr. Jellicoe had murdered +John Bellingham and disposed of the body in the +mummy-case, he would have been absolutely safe for +the time being. But there would be a weak spot in +his armour. For a month or more the disappearance +of his client would occasion no remark. But presently, +when he failed to return, inquiries would be set on foot; +and then it would appear that no one had seen him +since he left Queen Square. Then it would be noted +that the last person with whom he was seen was Mr. +Jellicoe. It might, further, be remembered that the +mummy had been delivered to the Museum some time +<i>after</i> the missing man was last seen alive. And so +suspicion might arise and be followed by disastrous +investigations. But supposing it should be made to +appear that John Bellingham had been seen alive more +than a month after his interview with Mr. Jellicoe and +some weeks after the mummy had been deposited in +the Museum? Then Mr. Jellicoe would cease to be +in any way connected with the disappearance, and +henceforth would be absolutely safe. +</p> +<p> +"Hence, after carefully considering this part of the +newspaper report, I came to the conclusion that the +mysterious occurrence at Mr. Hurst's house had only +one reasonable explanation, namely, that the visitor +was not John Bellingham, but someone personating him; +and that that someone was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"It remains to consider the case of Godfrey Bellingham +and his daughter, though I cannot understand +how any sane person can have seriously suspected +either" (here Inspector Badger smiled a sour smile). +"The evidence against them was negligible, for there +was nothing to connect them with the affair save the +finding of the scarab on their premises; and that event, +which might have been highly suspicious under other +circumstances, was robbed of any significance by the +fact that the scarab was found on a spot which had +been passed a few minutes previously by the other +suspected party, Hurst. The finding of the scarab +did, however, establish two important conclusions; +namely, that John Bellingham had probably met with +foul play, and that of the four persons present when +it was found, one at least had had possession of the +body. As to which of the four was the one, the circumstances +furnished only a hint, which was this: If +the scarab had been purposely dropped, the most likely +person to find it was the one who dropped it. And the +person who discovered it was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"Following up this hint, if we ask ourselves what +motive Mr. Jellicoe could have had for dropping it—assuming +him to be the murderer—the answer is +obvious. It would not be his policy to fix the crime +on any particular person, but rather to set up a complication +of conflicting evidence which would occupy +the attention of investigators and divert it from himself. +</p> +<p> +"Of course, if Hurst had been the murderer, he +would have had a sufficient motive for dropping the +scarab, so that the case against Mr. Jellicoe was not +conclusive; but the fact that it was he who found it +was highly significant. +</p> +<p> +"This completes the analysis of the evidence contained +in the original newspaper report describing the +circumstances of the disappearance. The conclusions +that followed from it were, as you will have seen: +</p> +<p> +"1. That the missing man was almost certainly dead, +as proved by the finding of the scarab after his disappearance. +</p> +<p> +"2. That he had probably been murdered by one or +more of four persons, as proved by the finding of the +scarab on the premises occupied by two of them and +accessible to the others. +</p> +<p> +"3. That, of those four persons, one—Mr. Jellicoe—was +the last person who was known to have been in +the company of the missing man; had had an exceptional +opportunity for committing the murder; and +was known to have delivered a dead body to the Museum +subsequently to the disappearance. +</p> +<p> +"4. That the supposition that Mr. Jellicoe had committed +the murder rendered all the other circumstances +of the disappearance clearly intelligible, whereas on +any other supposition they were quite inexplicable. +</p> +<p> +"The evidence of the newspaper report, therefore, +clearly pointed to the probability that John Bellingham +had been murdered by Mr. Jellicoe and his body concealed +in the mummy-case. +</p> +<p> +"I do not wish to give you the impression that I, +then and there, believed that Mr. Jellicoe was the murderer. +I did not. There was no reason to suppose +that the report contained all the essential facts, and I +merely considered it speculatively as a study in probabilities. +But I did decide that that was the only probable +conclusion from the facts that were given. +</p> +<p> +"Nearly two years passed before I heard anything +more of the case. Then it was brought to my notice +by my friend, Doctor Berkeley, and I became acquainted +with certain new facts, which I will consider +in the order in which they became known to me. +</p> +<p> +"The first new light on the case came from the will. +As soon as I had read that document I felt convinced +that there was something wrong. The testator's evident +intention was that his brother should inherit the +property, whereas the construction of the will was such +as almost certainly to defeat that intention. The devolution +of the property depended on the burial clause—clause +two; but the burial arrangements would ordinarily +be decided by the executor, who happened to be +Mr. Jellicoe. Thus the will left the disposition of the +property under the control of Mr. Jellicoe, though his +action could have been contested. +</p> +<p> +"Now, this will, although drawn up by John Bellingham, +was executed in Mr. Jellicoe's office, as is proved +by the fact that it was witnessed by two of his clerks. +He was the testator's lawyer, and it was his duty to +insist on the will being properly drawn. Evidently he +did nothing of the kind, and this fact strongly suggested +some kind of collusion on his part with Hurst, +who stood to benefit by the miscarriage of the will. +And this was the odd feature in the case; for whereas +the party responsible for the defective provisions was +Mr. Jellicoe, the party who benefited was Hurst. +</p> +<p> +"But the most startling peculiarity of the will was +the way in which it fitted the circumstances of the disappearance. +It looked as if clause two had been drawn +up with those very circumstances in view. Since, however, +the will was ten years old, this was impossible. +But if clause two could not have been devised to fit +the disappearance, could the disappearance have been +devised to fit clause two? That was by no means impossible: +under the circumstances it looked rather +probable. And if it had been so contrived, who was +the agent in that contrivance? Hurst stood to benefit, +but there was no evidence that he even knew the contents +of the will. There remained only Mr. Jellicoe, +who had certainly connived at the misdrawing of the +will for some purpose of his own—some dishonest +purpose. +</p> +<p> +"The evidence of the will, then, pointed to Mr. +Jellicoe as the agent in the disappearance, and, after +reading it, I definitely suspected him of the crime. +</p> +<p> +"Suspicion, however, is one thing and proof is another. +I had not nearly enough evidence to justify me +in laying an information, and I could not approach the +Museum officials without making a definite accusation. +The great difficulty of the case was that I could discover +no motive. I could not see any way in which +Mr. Jellicoe would benefit by the disappearance. His +own legacy was secure, whenever and however the testator +died. The murder and concealment apparently +benefited Hurst alone; and, in the absence of any +plausible motive, the facts required to be much more +conclusive than they were." +</p> +<p> +"Did you form absolutely no opinion as to motive?" +asked Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +He put the question in a quiet, passionless tone, as +if he were discussing some <i>cause célèbre</i> in which he +had nothing more than a professional interest. Indeed, +the calm, impersonal interest that he displayed in +Thorndyke's analysis, his unmoved attention, punctuated +by little nods of approval at each telling point in +the argument, were the most surprising features of this +astounding interview. +</p> +<p> +"I did form an opinion," replied Thorndyke, "but +it was merely speculative, and I was never able to confirm +it. I discovered that about ten years ago Mr. +Hurst had been in difficulties and that he had suddenly +raised a considerable sum of money, no one knew how +or on what security. I observed that this event coincided +in time with the execution of the will, and I surmised +that there might be some connection between +them. But that was only a surmise; and, as the proverb +has it, 'He discovers who proves.' I could prove +nothing, so that I never discovered Mr. Jellicoe's motive, +and I don't know it now." +</p> +<p> +"Don't you, really?" said Mr. Jellicoe, in something +approaching a tone of animation. He laid down the +end of his cigarette, and, as he selected another from +the silver case, he continued: "I think that is the most +interesting feature of your really remarkable analysis. +It does you great credit. The absence of motive would +have appeared to most persons a fatal objection to the +theory of, what I may call, the prosecution. Permit +me to congratulate you on the consistency and tenacity +with which you have pursued the actual, visible facts." +</p> +<p> +He bowed stiffly to Thorndyke (who returned his +bow with equal stiffness), lighted the fresh cigarette, +and once more leaned back in his chair with the calm, +attentive manner of a man who is listening to a lecture +or a musical performance. +</p> +<p> +"The evidence, then, being insufficient to act upon," +Thorndyke resumed, "there was nothing for it but to +wait for some new facts. Now, the study of a large +series of carefully conducted murders brings into view +an almost invariable phenomenon. The cautious murderer, +in his anxiety to make himself secure, does too +much; and it is this excess of precaution that leads +to detection. It happens constantly; indeed, I may +say that it always happens—in those murders that are +detected; of those that are not we say nothing—and +I had strong hopes that it would happen in this case. +And it did. +</p> +<p> +"At the very moment when my client's case seemed +almost hopeless, some human remains were discovered +at Sidcup. I read the account of the discovery in the +evening paper, and, scanty as the report was, it recorded +enough facts to convince me that the inevitable +mistake had been made." +</p> +<p> +"Did it, indeed?" said Mr. Jellicoe. "A mere, inexpert, +hearsay report! I should have supposed it to +be quite valueless from a scientific point of view." +</p> +<p> +"So it was," said Thorndyke. "But it gave the +date of the discovery and the locality, and it also mentioned +what bones had been found. Which were all +vital facts. Take the question of time. These remains, +after lying <i>perdu</i> for two years, suddenly come to light +just as the parties—who have also been lying <i>perdu</i>—have +begun to take action in respect of the will; in +fact, within a week or two of the hearing of the application. +It was certainly a remarkable coincidence. +And when the circumstances that occasioned the discovery +were considered, the coincidence became still +more remarkable. For these remains were found on +land actually belonging to John Bellingham, and their +discovery resulted from certain operations (the clearing +of the watercress-beds) carried out on behalf of the +absent landlord. But by whose orders were those works +undertaken? Clearly by the orders of the landlord's +agent. But the landlord's agent was known to be Mr. +Jellicoe. Therefore these remains were brought to light +at this peculiarly opportune moment by the action of +Mr. Jellicoe. The coincidence, I say again, was very +remarkable. +</p> +<p> +"But what instantly arrested my attention on reading +the newspaper report was the unusual manner in +which the arm had been separated; for, besides the +bones of the arm proper, there were those of what +anatomists call the 'shoulder-girdle'—the shoulder-blade +and collar-bone. This was very remarkable. It +seemed to suggest a knowledge of anatomy, and yet +no murderer, even if he possessed such knowledge, would +make a display of it on such an occasion. It seemed +to me that there must be some other explanation. +Accordingly, when other remains had come to light and +all had been collected at Woodford, I asked my friend +Berkeley to go down there and inspect them. He did +so, and this is what he found: +</p> +<p> +"Both arms had been detached in the same peculiar +manner; both were complete, and all the bones were +from the same body. The bones were quite clean—of +soft structures, I mean. There were no cuts, scratches, +or marks on them. There was not a trace of adipocere—the +peculiar waxy soap that forms in bodies that +decay in water or in a damp situation. The right hand +had been detached at the time the arm was thrown +into the pond, and the left ring finger had been +separated and had vanished. This latter fact had attracted +my attention from the first, but I will leave its +consideration for the moment and return to it later." +</p> +<p> +"How did you discover that the hand had been +detached?" Mr. Jellicoe asked. +</p> +<p> +"By the submersion marks," replied Thorndyke. +"It was lying on the bottom of the pond in a position +which would have been impossible if it had been +attached to the arm." +</p> +<p> +"You interest me exceedingly," said Mr. Jellicoe. +"It appears that a medico-legal expert finds 'books +in the running brooks, sermons in bones, and +evidence in everything.' But don't let me interrupt +you." +</p> +<p> +"Doctor Berkeley's observations," Thorndyke resumed, +"together with the medical evidence at the inquest, +led me to certain conclusions. +</p> +<p> +"Let me first state the facts which were disclosed. +</p> +<p> +"The remains which had been assembled formed a +complete human skeleton with the exception of the +skull, one finger, and the legs from knee to ankle, including +both knee-caps. This was a very impressive +fact; for the bones that were missing included all those +which could have been identified as belonging or not +belonging to John Bellingham; and the bones that were +present were the unidentifiable remainder. +</p> +<p> +"It had a suspicious appearance of selection. +</p> +<p> +"But the parts that were present were also curiously +suggestive. In all cases the mode of dismemberment +was peculiar; for an ordinary person would have divided +the knee-joint leaving the knee-cap attached to the +thigh, whereas it had evidently been left attached to +the shin-bone; and the head would most probably have +been removed by cutting through the neck instead of +being neatly detached from the spine. And all these +bones were also entirely free from marks or scratches +such as would naturally occur in an ordinary dismemberment, +and all were quite free from adipocere. +And now as to the conclusions which I drew from these +facts. First, there was the peculiar grouping of the +bones. What was the meaning of that? Well, the +idea of a punctilious anatomist was obviously absurd, +and I put it aside. But was there any other explanation? +Yes, there was. The bones had appeared in the +natural groups that are held together by ligaments; +and they had separated at points where they were +attached principally by muscles. The knee-cap, for +instance, which really belongs to the thigh, is attached +to it by muscle, but to the shin-bone by a stout ligament. +And so with the bones of the arm; they are connected +to one another by ligaments; but to the trunk +only by muscle, excepting at one end of the collar-bone. +</p> +<p> +"But this was a very significant fact. Ligament +decays much more slowly than muscle, so that in a +body of which the muscles had largely decayed the +bones might still be held together by ligament. The +peculiar grouping therefore suggested that the body +had been partly reduced to a skeleton before it was +dismembered; that it had then been merely pulled apart +and not divided with a knife. +</p> +<p> +"This suggestion was remarkably confirmed by the +total absence of knife-cuts or scratches. +</p> +<p> +"Then there was the fact that all the bones were +quite free from adipocere. Now, if an arm or a thigh +should be deposited in water and left undisturbed to +decay, it is certain that large masses of adipocere would +be formed. Probably more than half of the flesh would +be converted into this substance. The absence of adipocere +therefore proved that the bulk of the flesh had +disappeared or been removed from the bones before +they were deposited in the pond. That, in fact, it was +not a body, but a skeleton, that had been deposited. +</p> +<p> +"But what kind of skeleton? If it was the recent +skeleton of a murdered man, then the bones had been +carefully stripped of flesh so as to leave the ligaments +intact. But this was highly improbable; for there could +be no object in preserving the ligaments. And the +absence of scratches was against this view. +</p> +<p> +"Then they did not appear to be graveyard bones. +The collection was too complete. It is very rare to find +a graveyard skeleton of which many of the small bones +are not missing. And such bones are usually more or +less weathered and friable. +</p> +<p> +"They did not appear to be bones such as may be +bought at an osteological dealer's, for these usually +have perforations to admit the macerating fluid to the +marrow cavities. Dealers' bones, too, are very seldom +all from the same body; and the small bones of the +hand are drilled with holes to enable them to be strung +on catgut. +</p> +<p> +"They were not dissecting-room bones, as there was +no trace of red-lead in the openings for the nutrient +arteries. +</p> +<p> +"What the appearances did suggest was that these +were parts of a body which had decayed in a very dry +atmosphere (in which no adipocere would be formed), +and which had been pulled or broken apart. Also that +the ligaments which held the body—or rather skeleton—together +were brittle and friable, as suggested by the +detached hand, which had probably broken off accidentally. +But the only kind of body that completely +answers this description is an Egyptian mummy. A +mummy, it is true, has been more or less preserved; +but on exposure to the air of such a climate as ours it +perishes rapidly, the ligaments being the last of the +soft parts to disappear. +</p> +<p> +"The hypothesis that these bones were parts of a +mummy naturally suggested Mr. Jellicoe. If he had +murdered John Bellingham and concealed his body in +the mummy-case, he would have a spare mummy on +his hands, and that mummy would have been exposed +to the air and to somewhat rough handling. +</p> +<p> +"A very interesting circumstance connected with +these remains was that the ring finger was missing. +Now, fingers have on sundry occasions been detached +from dead hands for the sake of the rings on them. +But in such cases the object has been to secure a valuable +ring uninjured. If this hand was the hand of +John Bellingham, there was no such object. The purpose +was to prevent identification; and that purpose +would have been more easily, and much more completely, +achieved by sacrificing the ring, by filing through it or +breaking it off the finger. The appearances, therefore, +did not quite agree with the apparent purpose. +</p> +<p> +"Then, could there be any other purpose with which +they agreed better? Yes, there could. +</p> +<p> +"If it had happened that John Bellingham were +known to have worn a ring on that finger, and especially +if that ring fitted tightly, the removal of the finger +would serve a very useful purpose. It would create +an impression that the finger had been removed on +account of a ring, to prevent identification; which impression +would, in turn, produce a suspicion that the +hand was that of John Bellingham. And yet it would +not be evidence that could be used to establish identity. +Now, if Mr. Jellicoe were the murderer and had the +body hidden elsewhere, vague suspicion would be precisely +what he would desire, and positive evidence what +he would wish to avoid. +</p> +<p> +"It transpired later that John Bellingham did wear +a ring on that finger and that the ring fitted very +tightly. Whence it followed that the absence of the +finger was an additional point tending to implicate Mr. +Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"And now let us briefly review this mass of evidence. +You will see that it consists of a multitude of items, +each either trivial or speculative. Up to the time of +the actual discovery I had not a single crucial fact, +nor any clue as to motive. But, slight as the individual +points of evidence were, they pointed with impressive +unanimity to one person—Mr. Jellicoe. Thus: +</p> +<p> +"The person who had the opportunity to commit the +murder and dispose of the body was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"The deceased was last certainly seen alive with +Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"An unidentified human body was delivered to the +Museum by Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"The only person who could have a motive for +personating the deceased was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"The only known person who could possibly have +done so was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"One of the two persons who could have had a +motive for dropping the scarab was Mr. Jellicoe. The +person who found that scarab was Mr. Jellicoe, +although, owing to his defective eyesight and his +spectacles, he was the most unlikely person of those present +to find it. +</p> +<p> +"The person who was responsible for the execution +of the defective will was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"Then as to the remains. They were apparently +not those of John Bellingham, but parts of a particular +kind of body. But the only person who was known +to have had such a body in his possession was Mr. +Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"The only person who could have had any motive +for substituting those remains for the remains of the +deceased was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"Finally, the person who caused the discovery of +those remains at that singularly opportune moment was +Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"This was the sum of the evidence that was in my +possession up to the time of the hearing, and, indeed, +for some time after, and it was not enough to act +upon. But when the case had been heard in Court, it +was evident either that the proceedings would be abandoned—which +was unlikely—or that there would be +new developments. +</p> +<p> +"I watched the progress of events with profound +interest. An attempt had been made (by Mr. Jellicoe +or some other person) to get the will administered without +producing the body of John Bellingham; and that +attempt had failed. The coroner's jury had refused to +identify the remains; the Probate Court had refused +to presume the death of the testator. As affairs stood, +the will could not be administered. +</p> +<p> +"What would be the next move? +</p> +<p> +"It was virtually certain that it would consist in +the production of something which would identify the +unrecognised remains as those of the testator. +</p> +<p> +"But what would that something be? +</p> +<p> +"The answer to that question would contain the +answer to another question: Was my solution of the +mystery the true solution? +</p> +<p> +"If I was wrong, it was possible that some of the +undoubtedly genuine bones of John Bellingham might +presently be discovered; for instance, the skull, the +knee-cap, or the left fibula, by any of which the remains +could be positively identified. +</p> +<p> +"If I was right, only one thing could possibly happen. +Mr. Jellicoe would have to play the trump card +that he had been holding back in case the Court should +refuse the application; a card that he was evidently reluctant +to play. +</p> +<p> +"He would have to produce the bones of the +mummy's finger, together with John Bellingham's ring. +No other course was possible. +</p> +<p> +"But not only would the bones and the ring have +to be found together. They would have to be found +in a place which was accessible to Mr. Jellicoe, and so +far under his control that he could determine the exact +time when the discovery should be made. +</p> +<p> +"I waited patiently for the answer to my question. +Was I right or was I wrong? +</p> +<p> +"And in due course, the answer came. +</p> +<p> +"The bones and the ring were discovered in the well +in the grounds of Godfrey Bellingham's late house. +That house was the property of John Bellingham. Mr. +Jellicoe was John Bellingham's agent. Hence it was +practically certain that the date on which the well was +emptied was settled by Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"The Oracle had spoken. +</p> +<p> +"The discovery proved conclusively that the bones +were not those of John Bellingham (for if they had +been the ring would have been unnecessary for +identification). But if the bones were not John Bellingham's, +the ring was; from which followed the important +corollary that whoever had deposited those bones in +the well had had possession of the body of John +Bellingham. And there could be no doubt that that person +was Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"On receiving this final confirmation of my +conclusions, I applied forthwith to Doctor Norbury for +permission to examine the mummy of Sebek-hotep, with +the result that you are already acquainted with." +</p> +<p> +As Thorndyke concluded, Mr. Jellicoe regarded him +thoughtfully for a moment, and then said: "You have +given us a most complete and lucid exposition of your +method of investigation, sir. I have enjoyed it exceedingly, +and should have profited by it hereafter—under +other circumstances. Are you sure you won't allow +me to fill your glass?" He touched the stopper of +the decanter, and Inspector Badger ostentatiously consulted +his watch. +</p> +<p> +"Time is running on, I fear," said Mr. Jellicoe. +</p> +<p> +"It is, indeed," Badger assented emphatically. +</p> +<p> +"Well, I need not detain you long," said the lawyer. +"My statement is a mere narration of events. But I +desire to make it, and you, no doubt, will be interested +to hear it." +</p> +<p> +He opened the silver case and selected a fresh cigarette, +which, however, he did not light. Inspector +Badger produced a funereal notebook, which he laid +open on his knee; and the rest of us settled ourselves +in our chairs with no little curiosity to hear Mr. Jellicoe's +statement. +</p> + +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<a name="CH20"><!-- CH20 --></a> +<h2> + CHAPTER XX +</h2> + +<h3> +THE END OF THE CASE +</h3> +<p> +A profound silence had fallen on the room and its +occupants. Mr. Jellicoe sat with his eyes fixed on the +table as if deep in thought, the unlighted cigarette in +one hand, the other grasping the tumbler of water. +Presently Inspector Badger coughed impatiently and +he looked up. "I beg your pardon, gentlemen," he +said. "I am keeping you waiting." +</p> +<p> +He took a sip from the tumbler, opened a matchbox +and took out a match, but apparently altering his +mind, laid it down and commenced: +</p> +<p> +"The unfortunate affair which has brought you here +to-night, had its origin ten years ago. At that time +my friend Hurst became suddenly involved in financial +difficulties—am I speaking too fast for you, Mr. +Badger?" +</p> +<p> +"No, not at all," replied Badger. "I am taking it +down in shorthand." +</p> +<p> +"Thank you," said Mr. Jellicoe. "He became involved +in serious difficulties and came to me for assistance. +He wished to borrow five thousand pounds to +enable him to meet his engagements. I had a certain +amount of money at my disposal, but I did not consider +Hurst's security satisfactory; accordingly I felt compelled +to refuse. But on the very next day, John Bellingham called +on me with the draft of his will which he +wished me to look over before it was executed. +</p> +<p> +"It was an absurd will, and I nearly told him so; +but then an idea occurred to me in connection with +Hurst. It was obvious to me, as soon as I had glanced +through the will, that, if the burial clause was left as +the testator had drafted it, Hurst had a very good +chance of inheriting the property; and, as I was named +as the executor, I should be able to give full effect to +that clause. Accordingly, I asked for a few days to +consider the will, and I then called upon Hurst and +made a proposal to him; which was this: That I should +advance him five thousand pounds without security; +that I should ask for no repayment, but that he should +assign to me any interest that he might have or acquire +in the estate of John Bellingham up to ten thousand +pounds, or two-thirds of any sum that he might inherit +if over that amount. He asked if John had yet made +any will, and I replied, quite correctly, that he had not. +He inquired if I knew what testamentary arrangements +John intended to make, and again I answered, quite correctly, +that I believed that John proposed to devise the +bulk of his property to his brother, Godfrey. +</p> +<p> +"Thereupon, Hurst accepted my proposal; I made +him the advance and he executed the assignment. After +a few days' delay, I passed the will as satisfactory. +The actual document was written from the draft by +the testator himself; and a fortnight after Hurst had +executed the assignment, John signed the will in my +office. By the provisions of that will I stood an excellent +chance of becoming virtually the principal beneficiary, +unless Godfrey should contest Hurst's claim +and the Court should override the conditions of clause +two. +</p> +<p> +"You will now understand the motives which governed +my subsequent actions. You will also see, Doctor +Thorndyke, how very near to the truth your reasoning +carried you; and you will understand, as I wish +you to do, that Mr. Hurst was no party to any of those +proceedings which I am about to describe. +</p> +<p> +"Coming now to the interview in Queen Square in +October, nineteen hundred and two, you are aware of +the general circumstances from my evidence in Court, +which was literally correct up to a certain point. The +interview took place in a room on the third floor, in +which were stored the cases which John had brought +with him from Egypt. The mummy was unpacked, as +were some other objects that he was not offering to +the Museum, but several cases were still unopened. +At the conclusion of the interview I accompanied Doctor +Norbury down to the street door, and we stood on the +doorstep conversing for perhaps a quarter of an hour. +Then Doctor Norbury went away and I returned upstairs. +</p> +<p> +"Now the house in Queen Square is virtually a +museum. The upper part is separated from the lower +by a massive door which opens from the hall and gives +access to the staircase, and which is fitted with a Chubb +night-latch. There are two latchkeys, of which John +used to keep one and I the other. You will find them +both in the safe behind me. The caretaker had no key +and no access to the upper part of the house unless +admitted by one of us. +</p> +<p> +"At the time when I came in, after Doctor Norbury +had left, the caretaker was in the cellar, where I +could hear him breaking coke for the hot-water furnace. +I had left John on the third floor opening some +of the packing cases by the light of a lamp with a tool +somewhat like a plasterer's hammer; that is, a hammer +with a small axe-blade at the reverse of the head. +As I stood talking to Doctor Norbury, I could hear him +knocking out the nails and wrenching up the lids; and +when I entered the doorway leading to the stairs, I +could still hear him. Just as I closed the staircase door +behind me, I heard a rumbling noise from above; then +all was still. +</p> +<p> +"I went up the stairs to the second floor, where, +as the staircase was all in darkness, I stopped to light +the gas. As I turned to ascend the next flight, I saw +a hand projecting over the edge of the half-way landing. +I ran up the stairs, and there, on the landing, I saw +John lying huddled up in a heap at the foot of the top +flight. There was a wound at the side of his forehead +from which a little blood was trickling. The case-opener +lay on the floor close by him and there was blood +on the axe-blade. When I looked up the stairs I saw +a rag of torn matting hanging over the top stair. +</p> +<p> +"It was quite easy to see what had happened. He +had walked quickly out on the landing with the case-opener +in his hand. His foot had caught in the torn +matting and he had pitched head foremost down the +stairs, still holding the case-opener. He had fallen so +that his head had come down on the upturned edge of +the axe-blade; he had then rolled over and the case-opener +had dropped from his hand. +</p> +<p> +"I lit a wax match and stooped down to look at +him. His head was in a very peculiar position, which +made me suspect that his neck was broken. There was +extremely little bleeding from the wound; he was perfectly +motionless; I could detect no sign of breathing; +and I felt no doubt that he was dead. +</p> +<p> +"It was an exceedingly regrettable affair, and it +placed me, as I perceived at once, in an extremely +awkward position. My first impulse was to send the +caretaker for a doctor and a policeman; but a moment's +reflection convinced me that there were serious +objections to this course. +</p> +<p> +"There was nothing to show that I had not, myself, +knocked him down with the case-opener. Of course, +there was nothing to show that I had; but we were +alone in the house with the exception of the caretaker, +who was down in the basement out of ear-shot. +</p> +<p> +"There would be an inquest. At the inquest, inquiries +would be made as to the will which was known to +exist. But, as soon as the will was produced, Hurst +would become suspicious. He would probably make a +statement to the coroner and I should be charged with +the murder. Or, even if I were not charged, Hurst +would suspect me and would probably repudiate the +assignment; and, under the circumstances, it would +be practically impossible for me to enforce it. He +would refuse to pay and I could not take my claim into +Court. +</p> +<p> +"I sat down on the stairs just above poor John's +body and considered the matter in detail. At the +worst, I stood a fair chance of hanging; at the best, +I stood to lose close upon fifty thousand pounds. These +were not pleasant alternatives. +</p> +<p> +"Supposing, on the other hand, I concealed the body +and gave out that John had gone to Paris. There +was, of course, the risk of discovery, in which case I +should certainly be convicted of the murder. But if +no discovery occurred, I was not only safe from suspicion, +but I secured the fifty thousand pounds. In +either case there was considerable risk, but in one there +was the certainty of loss, whereas in the other there +was a material advantage to justify the risk. The +question was whether it would be possible to conceal +the body. If it were, then the contingent profit was +worth the slight additional risk. But a human body +is a very difficult thing to dispose of, especially to a +person of so little scientific culture as myself. +</p> +<p> +"It is curious that I considered this question for a +quite considerable time before the obvious solution +presented itself. I turned over at least a dozen methods +of disposing of the body, and rejected them all as impracticable. +Then, suddenly, I remembered the mummy +upstairs. +</p> +<p> +"At first it only occurred to me as a fantastic possibility +that I could conceal the body in the mummy-case. +But as I turned over the idea, I began to see +that it was really practicable; and not only practicable +but easy; and not only easy but eminently safe. If +once the mummy-case was in the Museum, I was rid +of it for ever. +</p> +<p> +"The circumstances were, as you, sir, have justly +observed, singularly favourable. There would be no +hue and cry, no hurry, no anxiety; but ample time +for all the necessary preparations. Then the mummy-case +itself was curiously suitable. Its length was ample, +as I knew from having measured it. It was a cartonnage +of rather flexible material and had an opening +behind, secured with a lacing so that it could be opened +without injury. Nothing need be cut but the lacing, +which could be replaced. A little damage might be +done in extracting the mummy and in introducing +the deceased; but such cracks as might occur would +all be at the back and would be of no importance. +For here again Fortune favoured me. The whole of +the back of the mummy-case was coated with bitumen, +and it would be easy when once the deceased was safely +inside to apply a fresh coat, which would cover up not +only the cracks but also the new lacing. +</p> +<p> +"After careful consideration, I decided to adopt the +plan. I went downstairs and sent the caretaker on an +errand to the Law Courts. Then I returned and carried +the deceased up to one of the third-floor rooms, +where I removed his clothes and laid him out on a long +packing-case in the position in which he would lie in the +mummy-case. I folded his clothes neatly and packed +them, with the exception of his boots, in a suit-case +that he had been taking to Paris and which contained +nothing but his night-clothes, toilet articles, and a +change of linen. By the time I had done this and +thoroughly washed the oilcloth on the stairs and landing, +the caretaker had returned. I informed him that +Mr. Bellingham had started for Paris and then I went +home. The upper part of the house was, of course, +secured by the Chubb lock, but I had also—<i>ex abundantiâ +cautelae</i>—locked the door of the room in which +I had deposited the deceased. +</p> +<p> +"I had, of course, some knowledge of the methods of +embalming, but principally of those employed by the +ancients. Hence, on the following day, I went to the +British Museum library and consulted the most recent +works on the subject; and exceedingly interesting they +were, as showing the remarkable improvements that +modern knowledge had effected in this ancient art. I +need not trouble you with details that are familiar +to you. The process that I selected as the simplest +for a beginner was that of formalin injection, and I +went straight from the Museum to purchase the necessary +materials. I did not, however, buy an embalming +syringe: the book stated that an ordinary anatomical +injecting syringe would answer the purpose, and I +thought it a more discreet purchase. +</p> +<p> +"I fear that I bungled the injection terribly, although +I had carefully studied the plates in a treatise +on anatomy—Gray's, I think. However, if my methods +were clumsy, they were quite effectual. I carried out +the process on the evening of the third day; and when +I locked up the house that night, I had the satisfaction +of knowing that poor John's remains were secure from +corruption and decay. +</p> +<p> +"But this was not enough. The great weight of a +fresh body as compared with that of a mummy would +be immediately noticed by those who had the handling +of the mummy-case. Moreover, the damp from the +body would quickly ruin the cartonnage and would +cause a steamy film on the inside of the glass case in +which it would be exhibited. And this would probably +lead to an examination. Clearly, then, it was necessary +that the remains of the deceased should be thoroughly +dried before they were enclosed in the cartonnage. +</p> +<p> +"Here my unfortunate deficiency in scientific knowledge +was a great drawback. I had no idea how this +result would be achieved, and in the end was compelled +to consult a taxidermist, to whom I represented that +I wished to collect small animals and reptiles and +rapidly dry them for convenience of transport. By +this person I was advised to immerse the dead animals +in a jar of methylated spirit for a week and then expose +them in a current of warm, dry air. +</p> +<p> +"But the plan of immersing the remains of the +deceased in a jar of methylated spirit was obviously +impracticable. However, I bethought me that we had +in our collection a porphyry sarcophagus, the cavity +of which had been shaped to receive a small mummy +in its case. I tried the deceased in the sarcophagus +and found that he just fitted the cavity loosely. I obtained +a few gallons of methylated spirit which I poured +into the cavity, just covering the body, and then I put +on the lid and luted it down air-tight with putty. I +trust I do not weary you with these particulars?" +</p> +<p> +"I'll ask you to cut it as short as you can, Mr. Jellicoe," +said Badger. "It has been a long yarn and time +is running on." +</p> +<p> +"For my part," said Thorndyke, "I find these details +deeply interesting and instructive. They fill in the +outline that I had drawn by inference." +</p> +<p> +"Precisely," said Mr. Jellicoe; "then I will proceed. +</p> +<p> +"I left the deceased soaking in the spirit for a fortnight +and then took him out, wiped him dry, and laid +him on four cane-bottomed chairs just over the hot-water +pipes. I turned off the hot water in the other +rooms so as to concentrate the heat in these pipes, and +I let a free current of air pass through the room. The +result interested me exceedingly. By the end of the +third day the hands and feet had become quite dry +and shrivelled and horny—so that the ring actually +dropped off the shrunken finger—the nose looked like a +fold of parchment; and the skin of the body was so dry +and smooth that you could have engrossed a lease on +it. For the first day or two I turned the deceased at +intervals so that he should dry evenly, and then I +proceeded to get the case ready. I divided the lacing +and extracted the mummy with great care—with great +care as to the case, I mean; for the mummy suffered +some injury in the extraction. It was very badly embalmed, +and so brittle that it broke in several places +while I was getting it out; and when I unrolled it the +head separated and both the arms came off. +</p> +<p> +"On the sixth day after the removal from the sarcophagus, +I took the bandages that I had removed from +Sebek-hotep and very carefully wrapped the deceased +in them, sprinkling powdered myrrh and gum benzoin +freely on the body and between the folds of the wrappings +to disguise the faint odour of the spirit and the +formalin that still lingered about the body. When the +wrappings had been applied, the deceased really had +a most workmanlike appearance; he would have looked +quite well in a glass case even without the cartonnage, +and I felt almost regretful at having to put him out of +sight for ever. +</p> +<p> +"It was a difficult business getting him into the case +without assistance, and I cracked the cartonnage badly +in several places before he was safely enclosed. But +I got him in at last, and then, when I had closed up +the case with a new lacing, I applied a fresh layer of +bitumen which effectually covered up the cracks and +the new cord. A dusty cloth dabbed over the bitumen +when it was dry disguised its newness, and the cartonnage +with its tenant was ready for delivery. I +notified Doctor Norbury of the fact, and five days +later he came and removed it to the Museum. +</p> +<p> +"Now that the main difficulty was disposed of, I +began to consider the further difficulty to which you, +sir, have alluded with such admirable perspicuity. It +was necessary that John Bellingham should make one +more appearance in public before sinking into final +oblivion. +</p> +<p> +"Accordingly, I devised the visit to Hurst's house, +which was calculated to serve two purposes. It created +a satisfactory date for the disappearance, eliminating +me from any connection with it, and by throwing some +suspicion on Hurst it would make him more amenable—less +likely to dispute my claim when he learned the +provisions of the will. +</p> +<p> +"The affair was quite simple. I knew that Hurst +had changed his servants since I was last at his house, +and I knew his habits. On that day I took the suit-case +to Charing Cross and deposited it in the cloak-room, +called at Hurst's office to make sure that he was there, +and went from thence direct to Cannon Street and +caught the train to Eltham. On arriving at the house, +I took the precaution to remove my spectacles—the +only distinctive feature of my exterior—and was duly +shown into the study at my request. As soon as the +housemaid had left the room I quietly let myself out +by the French window, which I closed behind me but +could not fasten, went out at the side gate and closed +that also behind me, holding the bolt of the latch back +with my pocket-knife so that I need not slam the gate +to shut it. +</p> +<p> +"The other events of that day, including the dropping +of the scarab, I need not describe, as they are +known to you. But I may fitly make a few remarks +on the unfortunate tactical error into which I fell in +respect of the bones. That error arose, as you have +doubtless perceived, from the lawyer's incurable habit +of underestimating the scientific expert. I had no idea +that mere bones were capable of furnishing so much +information to a man of science. +</p> +<p> +"The way in which the affair came about was this: +The damaged mummy of Sebek-hotep, perishing gradually +by exposure to the air, was not only an eyesore +to me: it was a definite danger. It was the only remaining +link between me and the disappearance. I +resolved to be rid of it and cast about for some means +of destroying it. And then, in an evil moment, the +idea of utilising it occurred to me. +</p> +<p> +"There was an undoubted danger that the Court +might refuse to presume death after so short an interval; +and if the permission should be postponed, the will +might never be administered during my lifetime. Hence, +if these bones of Sebek-hotep could be made to simulate +the remains of the deceased testator, a definite good +would be achieved. But I knew that the entire skeleton +could never be mistaken for his. The deceased had +broken his knee-caps and damaged his ankle, injuries +which I assumed would leave some permanent trace. +But if a judicious selection of the bones were deposited +in a suitable place, together with some object clearly +identifiable as appertaining to the deceased, it seemed +to me that the difficulty would be met. I need not +trouble you with details. The course which I adopted +is known to you with the attendant circumstances, even +to the accidental detachment of the right hand—which +broke off as I was packing the arm in my handbag. +Erroneous as that course was, it would have been successful +but for the unforeseen contingency of your +being retained in the case. +</p> +<p> +"Thus, for nearly two years, I remained in complete +security. From time to time I dropped in at the +museum to see if the deceased was keeping in good condition; +and on those occasions I used to reflect with +satisfaction on the gratifying circumstance—accidental +though it was—that his wishes, as expressed (very imperfectly) +in clause two, had been fully complied with, +and that without prejudice to my interests. +</p> +<p> +"The awakening came on that evening when I saw +you at the Temple gate talking with Doctor Berkeley. +I suspected immediately that something had gone amiss +and that it was too late to take any useful action. +Since then, I have waited here in hourly expectation +of this visit. And now the time has come. You have +made the winning move and it remains only for me to +pay my debts like an honest gambler." +</p> +<p> +He paused and quietly lit his cigarette. Inspector +Badger yawned and put away his note-book. +</p> +<p> +"Have you done, Mr. Jellicoe?" the inspector asked. +"I want to carry out my contract to the letter, you +know, though it's getting devilish late." +</p> +<p> +Mr. Jellicoe took his cigarette from his mouth and +drank a glass of water. +</p> +<p> +"I forgot to ask," he said, "whether you unrolled +the mummy—if I may apply the term to the imperfectly +treated remains of my deceased client." +</p> +<p> +"I did not open the mummy-case," replied Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +"You did not!" exclaimed Mr. Jellicoe. "Then +how did you verify your suspicions?" +</p> +<p> +"I took an X-ray photograph." +</p> +<p> +"Ah! Indeed!" Mr. Jellicoe pondered for some +moments. "Astonishing!" he murmured; "and most +ingenious. The resources of science at the present day +are truly wonderful." +</p> +<p> +"Is there anything more that you want to say?" +asked Badger; "because, if you don't, time's +up." +</p> +<p> +"Anything more?" Mr. Jellicoe repeated slowly; +"anything more? No—I—think—think—the time—is—up. +Yes—the—the time—" +</p> +<p> +He broke off and sat with a strange look fixed on +Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +His face had suddenly undergone a curious change. +It looked shrunken and cadaverous and his lips had +assumed a peculiar cherry-red colour. +</p> +<p> +"Is anything the matter, Mr. Jellicoe?" Badger +asked uneasily. "Are you not feeling well, sir?" +</p> +<p> +Mr. Jellicoe did not appear to have heard the question, +for he returned no answer, but sat motionless, +leaning back in his chair, with his hands spread out +on the table and his strangely intent gaze bent on +Thorndyke. +</p> +<p> +Suddenly his head dropped on his breast and his +body seemed to collapse; and as with one accord we +sprang to our feet, he slid forward off his chair and +disappeared under the table. +</p> +<p> +"Good Lord! The man's fainted!" exclaimed +Badger. +</p> +<p> +In a moment he was down on his hands and knees, +trembling with excitement, groping under the table. +He dragged the unconscious lawyer out into the light +and knelt over him, staring into his face. +</p> +<p> +"What's the matter with him, Doctor?" he asked, +looking up at Thorndyke. "Is it apoplexy? Or is it +a heart attack, think you?" +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke shook his head, though he stooped and +put his fingers on the unconscious man's wrist. "Prussic +acid or potassium cyanide is what the appearances +suggest," he replied. +</p> +<p> +"But can't you do anything?" demanded the inspector. +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke dropped the arm, which fell limply to the +floor. +</p> +<p> +"You can't do much for a dead man," he said. +</p> +<p> +"Dead! Then he has slipped through our fingers +after all!" +</p> +<p> +"He has anticipated the sentence. That is all." +Thorndyke spoke in an even, impassive tone which +struck me as rather strange, considering the suddenness +of the tragedy, as did also the complete absence +of surprise in his manner. He seemed to treat the +occurrence as a perfectly natural one. +</p> +<p> +Not so Inspector Badger; who rose to his feet and +stood with his hands thrust into his pockets scowling +sullenly down at the dead lawyer. +</p> +<p> +"I was an infernal fool to agree to his blasted conditions," +he growled savagely. +</p> +<p> +"Nonsense," said Thorndyke. "If you had broken +in, you would have found a dead man. As it was you +found a live man and obtained an important statement. +You acted quite properly." +</p> +<p> +"How do you suppose he managed it?" asked +Badger. +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke held out his hand. "Let us look at his +cigarette-case," said he. +</p> +<p> +Badger extracted the little silver case from the dead +man's pocket and opened it. There were five cigarettes +in it, two of which were plain, while the other three +were gold-tipped. Thorndyke took out one of each +kind and gently pinched their ends. The gold-tipped +one he returned; the plain one he tore through, about +a quarter of an inch from the end; when two little +white tabloids dropped out on the table. Badger +eagerly picked one up and was about to smell it when +Thorndyke grasped his wrist. "Be careful," said he; +and when he had cautiously sniffed at the tabloid—held +at a safe distance from his nose—he added: "Yes, +potassium cyanide. I thought so when his lips turned +that queer colour. It was in that last cigarette; you +can see that he has bitten off the end." +</p> +<p> +For some time we stood silently looking down at the +still form stretched on the floor. Presently Badger +looked up. +</p> +<p> +"As you pass the porter's lodge on your way out," +said he, "you might just drop in and tell him to send +a constable to me." +</p> +<p> +"Very well," said Thorndyke. "And by the way, +Badger, you had better tip that sherry back into the +decanter and put it under lock and key, or else pour it +out of the window." +</p> +<p> +"Gad, yes!" exclaimed the inspector. "I'm glad +you mentioned it. We might have had an inquest on +a constable as well as a lawyer. Good night, gentlemen, +if you are off." +</p> +<p> +We went out and left him with his prisoner—passive +enough, indeed, according to his ambiguously worded +promise. As we passed through the gateway Thorndyke +gave the inspector's message, curtly and without +comment, to the gaping porter, and then we issued forth +into Chancery Lane. +</p> +<p> +We were all silent and very grave, and I thought that +Thorndyke seemed somewhat moved. Perhaps Mr. Jellicoe's +last intent look—which I suspect he knew to +be the look of a dying man—lingered in his memory +as it did in mine. Half-way down Chancery Lane he +spoke for the first time; and then it was only to ejaculate, +"Poor devil!" +</p> +<p> +Jervis took him up. "He was a consummate villain, +Thorndyke." +</p> +<p> +"Hardly that," was the reply. "I should rather +say that he was non-moral. He acted without malice +and without scruple or remorse. His conduct exhibited +a passionless expediency which was rather dreadful +because utterly unhuman. But he was a strong man—a +courageous, self-contained man, and I had been better +pleased if it could have been ordained that some other +hand than mine should let the axe fall." +</p> +<p> +Thorndyke's compunction may appear strange and +inconsistent, but yet his feeling was also my own. +Great as were the misery and suffering that this inscrutable +man had brought into the lives of those I loved, +I forgave him; and in his downfall forgot the callous +relentlessness with which he had pursued his evil purpose. +For he it was who had brought Ruth into my +life; who had opened for me the Paradise of Love into +which I had just entered. And so my thoughts turned +away from the still shape that lay on the floor of the +stately old room in Lincoln's Inn, away to the sunny +vista of the future, where I should walk hand in hand +with Ruth until my time, too, should come; until I, +too, like the grim lawyer, should hear the solemn evening +bell bidding me put out into the darkness of the +silent sea. +</p> +<p> </p> +<hr class="full"> +<p> </p> +<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE VANISHING MAN***</p> +<p>******* This file should be named 10476-h.txt or 10476-h.zip *******</p> +<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br /> +<a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/1/0/4/7/10476">https://www.gutenberg.org/1/0/4/7/10476</a></p> +<p>Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed.</p> + +<p>Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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